parula

[ par-yuh-luh, -uh-luh ]

noun

1. any of several American wood warblers of the genus Parula, especially P. americana northern parula, having bluish plumage with a yellow throat and breast.

Word History and Origins

Origin of parula¹

< New Latin Parula a genus name, alteration of Parulus an earlier genus name, equivalent to Late Latin pār ( us ) titmouse (akin to Latin parra a bird whose cry was considered a bad omen) + Latin -ulus -ule

Example Sentences

“Northern parula to the left!”

From Washington Post

Georgia’s Jekyll Island, once the seasonal playground of the Vanderbilts and Rockefellers, offers a refuge to the northern parula, the magnolia warbler and other birds.

From New York Times

“In 2015, I had great blue heron, red-bellied woodpecker, American crow, American robin, brown thrasher, northern parula, pine warbler, yellow-throated warbler, chipping sparrow, white-throated sparrow.”

From Slate

“Really, it’s a matter of ethics and attitude,” said Mary E. Kelly, a principal at the Austin environmental analysis firm Parula.

From New York Times

Call, a warbler lisp and tchip of the Myrtle Warbler; song resembling that of Parula Warbler.

From Project Gutenberg