chough
Americannoun
noun
-
a large black passerine bird, Pyrrhocorax pyrrhocorax, of parts of Europe, Asia, and Africa, with a long downward-curving red bill: family Corvidae (crows)
-
a smaller related bird, Pyrrhocorax graculus, with a shorter yellow bill
Etymology
Origin of chough
1275–1325; Middle English choghe; akin to Old English cēo, Dutch kauw, Danish kaa
Vocabulary lists containing chough
"The Tragedy of Macbeth," Vocabulary from Act 3
Looking to grow your vocabulary? Check out this interactive, curated word list from our team of English language specialists at Vocabulary.com – one of over 17,000 lists we've built to help learners worldwide!
"The Tragedy of Hamlet," Vocabulary from Act 5
Interested in learning more words like this one? Our team at Vocabulary.com has got you covered! You can review flashcards, quiz yourself, practice spelling, and more – and it's all completely free to use!
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.
She found it easier this time, and there was the chough, with her in her own world, perching on a branch that hung low over the pavement.
From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman
Angelo, the would-be Puritan ruler, was a "false seemer," Malvolio was a "chough."
From The Man Shakespeare by Harris, Frank
Jacky was a Cornish chough, coal-black in plumage, with brilliant orange-tinted beak.
From The Tree of Knowledge A Novel by Reynolds, Mrs. Baillie
In the following exceptions, however, gh are pronounced as f:—cough, chough, clough, enough, laugh, rough, slough, tough, trough.
From Enquire Within Upon Everything The Great Victorian Domestic Standby by Anonymous
Think you that I cannot pluck yon chough without being pinched?
From The Yeoman Adventurer by Gough, George W.
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.
