flycatcher

[ flahy-kach-er ]

noun

1. any of numerous Old World birds of the family Muscicapidae, that feed on insects captured in the air.
2. Also called tyrant flycatcher. any of numerous similar American birds of the family Tyrannidae.

flycatcher

/ ˈflaɪˌkætʃə /

noun

1. any small insectivorous songbird of the Old World subfamily Muscicapinae , having small slender bills fringed with bristles: family Muscicapidae See also spotted flycatcher
2. any American passerine bird of the family Tyrannidae

Word History and Origins

Origin of flycatcher¹

First recorded in 1590–1600; fly ¹ + catcher

Example Sentences

These efforts have helped protect a refuge for birds including willow flycatchers and yellow-billed cuckoos.

From Los Angeles Times

The floodplains also provide habitat for monarch butterflies and birds such as vermilion flycatchers, yellow warblers and red-winged blackbirds.

From Los Angeles Times

Would the same large populations of migratory birds, like the flycatchers that sailed gracefully all over these open hills, continue to thrive if the tree cover increased?

From New York Times

It’s also habitat for desert bighorn sheep, and birds including the threatened western yellow-billowed cuckoo and the endangered southwestern willow flycatcher.

From National Geographic

Some of Jade’s work spoke to her personal interests in nature and birds, like an entry she wrote on the vermilion flycatcher, which got about 21,000 page views in the past 12 months.

From New York Times