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ptarmigan

American  
[tahr-mi-guhn] / ˈtɑr mɪ gən /

noun

plural

ptarmigans,

plural

ptarmigan

  1. any of several grouses of the genus Lagopus, of mountainous and cold northern regions, having feathered feet.

ptarmigan British  
/ ˈtɑːmɪɡən /

noun

  1. any of several arctic and subarctic grouse of the genus Lagopus, esp L. mutus, which has a white winter plumage

  2. (sometimes capital) a created domestic fancy pigeon with ruffled or curled feathers on the wings and back

"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 ptarmigan

1590–1600; pseudo-Greek spelling of Scots Gaelic tarmarchan, akin to Irish tarmanach

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.