Java sparrow

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.

Java sparrow

noun

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

Word History and Origins

Origin of Java sparrow¹

First recorded in 1860–65

Example Sentences

"Java sparrows are native to the tropics and breed most of the year. Morphological changes signaling fertility are important for ensuring reproductive synchrony -- especially in the tropics, where seasonal cues are absent," added Soma.

From Science Daily

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

From Washington Post

Previously, similar kinds of tests have shown that rats, Java sparrows, and monkeys can understand the difference between speech and random noise without being specifically trained to identify a language.

From Salon

Male Java sparrows are songbirds — and, scientists reported on Wednesday, natural percussionists.

From New York Times

Hold!—apropos, to the lying-in list—at Mrs. Barbara Winterbloom's, to inquire after the Angola kittens, and the last hatch of Java sparrows.

From Project Gutenberg