oriole

noun

1
: any of various usually brightly colored Old World passerine birds (family Oriolidae and especially genus Oriolus)
2
: any of various New World passerine birds (genus Icterus of the family Icteridae) of which the males are usually black and yellow or black and orange

Illustration of oriole

Illustration of oriole
  • oriole 2

Examples of oriole in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web Making themselves at home, hooded orioles will use hummingbird feeders and make woven nests out of plants, such as large birds of paradise and banana trees, Burns said, both of which grow well in San Diego. Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2024 Hooded oriole The hooded oriole is a common bird in San Diego during springtime. Maura Fox, San Diego Union-Tribune, 28 Feb. 2024 There are other types of orioles that may show up, too. Taylor Piephoff, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024 Baltimore orioles should be fairly easy to identify as orioles. Taylor Piephoff, Charlotte Observer, 31 Jan. 2024 And also discovers the phony oriole perched on the bird feeder. Irv Erdos, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Apr. 2023 Within days, the summer hubbub of busy orioles was replaced by the arrival at our seed feeders of a raucous bird with a new name. Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 17 Sep. 2023 At the end of the summer, Southern California waves goodbye to migrating cliff swallows, hooded orioles, and black-headed grosbeaks. Christianna Silva, Better Homes & Gardens, 11 Sep. 2023 As migrations go, the oriole journey is not a long one. Ernie Cowan, San Diego Union-Tribune, 3 Sep. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'oriole.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

New Latin oriolus, from Medieval Latin, from Old French oriol, from Latin aureolus golden-colored, diminutive of aureus golden — more at aureus

First Known Use

1768, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of oriole was in 1768

Dictionary Entries Near oriole

Cite this Entry

“Oriole.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/oriole. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

oriole

noun
ori·​ole ˈōr-ē-ˌōl How to pronounce oriole (audio) ˈȯr- How to pronounce oriole (audio)
-ē-əl
1
: any of various usually brightly colored Old World birds related to the crows
2
: any of various New World birds that build hanging nests woven from various materials (as grass and leaves) and the males of which are usually black and yellow or orange and the females chiefly greenish or yellowish

More from Merriam-Webster on oriole

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!