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dust-bathe

American  
[duhst-beyth] / ˈdʌstˌbeɪð /

verb (used without object)

Animal Behavior.
dust-bathed, dust-bathing

  1. (of a bird) to squat in dusty soil and fluff dust through the plumage: probably performed to combat ectoparasites.

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.

“They can dust-bathe, they can forage, they can move freely and even engage in some flight behavior.”

From Washington Post

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.