Java sparrow

American  

noun

1. a finchlike weaverbird, Padda oryzivora, of southeastern Asia, having gray plumage tinged with pink on the belly, often kept as a cage bird.

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Java sparrow British  

noun

1. a small grey-and-pink finchlike Indonesian weaverbird, Padda oryzivora: a popular cage bird

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Etymology

Origin of Java sparrow

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

Lund’s allegorical novel imagines a boy with a Java sparrow living in his rib cage.

From Washington Post • Feb. 1, 2022

"You used to call her the Java sparrow," said Rosa.

From A Romance of the Republic by Child, Lydia Maria Francis

On the opposite side of the room, in a corner, was a very large cage, in the sole occupancy of a solitary Java sparrow.

From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 1, August 28, 1841 by Various

His rumination ended in a doze, and his doze in a dream, in which he fancied himself a Brobdignag Java sparrow during the moulting season.

From Punch, or the London Charivari, Volume 1, September 5, 1841 by Various

"Yes, she made me think of my little Java sparrow, with pale fawn-colored feathers, and little gleams of violet on the neck," responded Flora.

From A Romance of the Republic by Child, Lydia Maria Francis