Cormorant

Cormorant
Cormorant Cor"mo*rant (k[^o]r"m[-o]*rant), n. [F. cormoran, fr. Armor. m[=o]r-vran a sea raven; m[=o]r sea + bran raven, with cor, equiv. to L. corvus raven, pleonastically prefixed; or perh. fr. L. corvus marinus sea raven.] 1. (Zo["o]l.) Any species of {Phalacrocorax}, a genus of sea birds having a sac under the beak; the shag. Cormorants devour fish voraciously, and have become the emblem of gluttony. They are generally black, and hence are called {sea ravens}, and {coalgeese}. [Written also {corvorant}.] [1913 Webster]

2. A voracious eater; a glutton, or gluttonous servant. --B. Jonson. [1913 Webster]


The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.

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  • cormorant — index rapacious Burton s Legal Thesaurus. William C. Burton. 2006 …   Law dictionary

  • cormorant — early 14c., from O.Fr. cormarenc (12c., Mod.Fr. cormoran), from L.L. corvus marinus sea raven + Germanic suffix enc, ing. The t in English probably is from confusion with words in ant. It has a reputation for voracity …   Etymology dictionary

  • cormorant — ► NOUN ▪ a large diving seabird with a long neck, long hooked bill, and mainly black plumage. ORIGIN Old French cormaran, from Latin corvus marinus sea raven …   English terms dictionary

  • cormorant — [kôr′mə rənt] n. [ME cormoraunt < OFr cormareng < corp marenc < L corvus marinus < corvus,RAVEN1 + marinus,MARINE] 1. any of a family (Phalacrocoracidae) of large, voracious, pelecaniform diving birds with webbed toes and a hooked… …   English World dictionary

  • Cormorant — Cormorants and shags Temporal range: Late Cretaceous? – Recent …   Wikipedia

  • Cormorant — Zeichnung des Cormorant Der Cormorant (offizieller Name: Cormorant Multi Purpose Unmanned Air System [1] ; deutsch etwa: Kormoran (benannt nach einer tauchenden Vogelart) Vielzweck Drohne) ist ein militärisches Projekt der Skunk Works… …   Deutsch Wikipedia

  • cormorant — /kawr meuhr euhnt/, n. 1. any of several voracious, totipalmate seabirds of the family Phalacrocoracidae, as Phalacrocorax carbo, of America, Europe, and Asia, having a long neck and a distensible pouch under the bill for holding captured fish,… …   Universalium

  • cormorant — [13] In early medieval times the cormorant was named ‘sea raven’ – that is, in Latin, corvus marīnus. This passed into Old French first as cormareng, which later became cormaran. English adopted it and added a final t. The word’s origins are… …   The Hutchinson dictionary of word origins

  • cormorant — UK [ˈkɔː(r)mərənt] / US [ˈkɔrmərənt] noun [countable] Word forms cormorant : singular cormorant plural cormorants a large dark coloured bird with a long neck that lives near the sea and eats fish …   English dictionary

  • cormorant — /ˈkɔmərənt / (say kawmuhruhnt) noun 1. any of various large, web footed, black or pied waterbirds of the genus Phalacrocorax, family Phalacrocoracidae, having a long neck and a pouch under the bill in which fish are held; often seen standing in… …  

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