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junco

junco

1 8.8
A small North American bird like a sparrow with gray or brown feathers often seen in winter
  • noun
  • /ˈdʒʌŋkoʊ/
  • US
translation icon : junco
  • During winter, many juncos can be spotted at bird feeders throughout North America.
  • dark-eyed junco
  • eyed junco
  • juncos, and towhees

Examples

  • We have many conversations, those juncos and I.

    Blog text (25)
  • My most cherished memory of loving him was seeing him, jacketless, tie flapping, running out into the snow under the picture window to scatter bird seed so he could teach me the names of the birds: scissortail swallow, junco, grackle.

    Academic text (2001)
  • I heard the junco.

    Blog text (12)
  • Early in the morning, juncos stitched the stoop into a pattern.

    Fiction book (2000)
  • On the steps, his nephew, Daniel, sits turning the pages of the Bird Book, in which they recorded that morning, out of season, a dark-eyed junco.

    Fiction book (1994)
  • Also, fewer juncos, fewer chickadees, fewer everything, really, except house sparrows.

    Fiction book (1993)
  • Cardinals, doves, juncos, and other ground feeders are attracted by tossing seed on the ground.

    Blog text (23)
  • Outside, snow fell on the bright green grass, and a group of cold juncos stood unhappily on our porch rail like uniformed children waiting for a bus.

    Fiction book (2002)
  • If you see a junco, keep looking; there are more nearby.

  • A flock of juncos was foraging for seeds on the snowy ground.

Synonyms

snowbird
vsjunco
  • US
1 7.6

A small songbird often seen in cold northern areas in winter

is a specific North American species seen in winter rather than any winter visitor
Junco hyemalis
vsjunco
  • Specialized
8.3

A small North American sparrow with grey and white feathers and dark eyes

is the broader common group name used for similar small winter birds
dark-eyed junco
vsjunco
  • US
7.3

A small North American sparrow with grey feathers and dark eyes

uses a different family label and calls it a finch
slate-colored junco
vsjunco
  • US
6.1

A small North American bird with mostly grey feathers and a white belly

names the broader group that includes various similar small species

Compounds

A small North American sparrow with grey feathers and dark eyes

Junco hyemalis
  • Specialized
8.3

A small North American sparrow with grey and white feathers and dark eyes

A small North American bird with mostly grey feathers and a white belly

Surface Forms

junco singular
juncos plural

Etymology

The word junco comes from Spanish junco, meaning 'rush', a reed plant, and from Latin juncus. The bird was named for this plant because it is often found among low grass and reeds, so junco now means a small winter finch.