blue jay

noun

1. a common, crested jay, Cyanocitta cristata, of eastern North America, having a bright blue back and a gray breast.

blue jay

noun

1. a common North American jay, Cyanocitta cristata , having bright blue plumage with greyish-white underparts

Word History and Origins

Origin of blue jay¹

An Americanism dating back to 1700–10

Example Sentences

Feathers also have microscopic keratin structures that can reflect different light wavelengths, such as the ones in blue jay feathers that absorb every wavelength except blue.

From Popular-Science

The blue-jay took his bath in an original way as he did everything else.

From Project Gutenberg

Another mischievous deity of the Chinooks and other western peoples is Blue Jay.

From Project Gutenberg

All was still, except for the chatter of a blue-jay, and after a moment or so his attention again relaxed.

From Project Gutenberg

Ralph, you remind me of the blue-jay in the cage upon the stoep which knows but one word and repeats it all day long.

From Project Gutenberg

Then, his eye roving to the loftier shelves, he spied remotely above him a stuffed blue jay mounted on a varnished branch of oak.

From Project Gutenberg