pelican
/ˈpɛl.ɪ.kən/
Word Rarity
Rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 3.07 in modern English
11
Scrabble Score
7
Letters
3
Syllables
7
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
Any of various seabirds of the family Pelecanidae, having a long bill with a distendable pouch.
noun
A native or resident of the American state of Louisiana.
noun
A retort or still having a curved tube or tubes leading back from the head to the body for continuous condensation and redistillation.
Obsolete
Example Sentences
- "The old have outlived that mental world we so misname in calling it a world of enjoyment;—they have outlived the feverish dreams which waste those keen hopes—the pelicans of the heart, feeding on the life-blood of their parent;—they have now no part in the excitement of success, whether in its desire or disappointment."
- "Pelicans fly below us with stiffly formal strokes, and gulls wheel and keen."
Etymology
From Middle English pellican, pellicane, from Old English pellican (“pelican”), from Latin pelecānus, from Ancient Greek πελεκάν (pelekán), πέλεκυς (pélekus, “hatchet”).
Origin
Word Breakdown
- Root: pellican, pelecānus, πελεκάν
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /ˈpɛl.ɪ.kən/
- British English: /ˈpɛl.ɪ.kən/