heronry

American

[her-uhn-ree] / ˈhɛr ən ri /

noun

plural

heronries

a place where a colony of herons breeds.

heronry British

/ ˈhɛrənrɪ /

noun

a colony of breeding herons

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of heronry

First recorded in 1610–20; heron + -ry

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

The nests were revealed as part of the British Trust for Ornithology's annual heronry census.

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2022

Carl Hawke, nature conservation adviser at the National Trust, said the larger heronry was "great news to discover".

From BBC • Apr. 13, 2022

If there is an ancient heronry in your neighbourhood, as there is in mine, don't attempt to visit the untidy, ill-smelling place on a hot day.

From Birds Every Child Should Know by Blanchan, Neltje

During the nesting season, which covers the months of April, May and June, I am through this heronry in a small canoe almost every day, and often twice a day.

From Our Vanishing Wild Life Its Extermination and Preservation by Hornaday, William Temple

My father brought them from a heronry not many miles from the great Okeechobee Lake.

From Harper's Young People, May 25, 1880 An Illustrated Weekly by Various

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023