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Glite Dictionary
gooney bird

gooney bird

9.5
A large sea bird with long wings that looks clumsy on land
  • noun
  • /ˈɡuːni bɜrd/
  • US
translation icon : pájaro gooney
  • While hiking, we spotted a clumsy gooney bird waddling across the beach.

Examples

  • At the nature reserve, the gooney bird can often be seen nesting along the cliffs.

  • - Gooney bird, yep.

    Shoot Out (1971)

  • Damn you, gooney birds, bring it back!

    Shoot Out (1971)

  • Gooney bird's the only thing can eat one of them and still fly.

    Shoot Out (1971)

  • I can't see anything except a couple of sampans and some gooney birds.

    In Harm's Way (1965)

  • This coral atoll is home to over half a million nesting pairs of Laysan Albatross, the gooney birds of World War II fame.

    Academic text (1999)

  • The gooney bird is known for its awkward movements when it is not flying.

Synonyms

seabird
vsgooney bird
10 1.9

A bird that lives near the sea and often flies over water, like gulls or albatrosses

is more specific to large albatross species and notes awkward land movement
albatross
vsgooney bird
9 6.9

A very large sea bird with long narrow wings that glides over the ocean

is more specific to North Pacific species and notes awkward land movement
goonie
vsgooney bird
  • US
3 9.9

A large sea bird with black feet that lives in the North Pacific

highlights awkward land movement instead of focusing only on naming
gooney
vsgooney bird
  • US
1 9.9

A large sea bird with long wings and black feet that lives in the North Pacific

focuses on common naming rather than awkward land movement
sea bird
vsgooney bird
1 2.0

A bird that lives near the sea, like a gull

is narrower in common use focusing on large Pacific species and awkward movement
black-footed albatross
vsgooney bird
  • US
8.9

A large sea bird with dark feathers and black feet that flies over the North Pacific

emphasizes awkward land movement rather than only species appearance
Diomedea nigripes
vsgooney bird
  • Specialized
9.9

A large sea bird with dark feathers and black feet that lives in the North Pacific

uses common naming that highlights awkward land movement rather than formal name
goony
vsgooney bird
  • US
9.9

A large sea bird with black feet that lives in the Pacific

emphasizes clumsy land movement as a distinct feature
seafowl
vsgooney bird
7.2

A bird that lives near the sea, like gulls or pelicans

refers to coastal birds generally rather than the specific large awkward Pacific species

Surface Forms

gooney bird singular
gooney birds plural

Morphology

gooney + bird

The compound is directly interpretable because 'gooney' already names a type of large seabird and adding 'bird' simply signals it is a bird — a straightforward noun + noun naming pattern. Although regional/colloquial, the composition follows common lexical naming conventions so a B1 learner who knows both constituents would readily infer the meaning.

Etymology

Gooney bird may come from sailors who watched large albatrosses follow their ships and walk very awkwardly on deck. People called the birds gooney as a joking word for 'clumsy', so the name now means a big, awkward seabird.