PENGUINS

Noun

penguins

plural of penguin

Source: Wiktionary


PENGUIN

Pen"guin, n. Etym: [Perh. orig. the name of another bird, and fr. W. pen head + gwyn white; or perh. from a native South American name.]

1. (Zoöl.)

Definition: Any bird of the order Impennes, or Ptilopteri. They are covered with short, thick feathers, almost scalelike on the wings, which are without true quills. They are unable to fly, but use their wings to aid in diving, in which they are very expert. See King penguin, under Jackass.

Note: Penguins are found in the south temperate and antarctic regions. The king penguins (Aptenodytes Patachonica, and A. longirostris) are the largest; the jackass penguins (Spheniscus) and the rock hoppers (Catarractes) congregate in large numbers at their breeding grounds.

2. (Bot.)

Definition: The egg-shaped fleshy fruit of a West Indian plant (Bromelia Pinguin) of the Pineapple family; also, the plant itself, which has rigid, pointed, and spiny-toothed leaves, and is used for hedges. [Written also pinguin.] Arctic penguin (Zoöl.), the great auk. See Auk.

Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition



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Word of the Day

2 November 2024

FRUMP

(noun) a dull unattractive unpleasant girl or woman; “she got a reputation as a frump”; “she’s a real dog”


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Coffee Trivia

Contrary to popular belief, coffee beans are not technically beans. They are referred to as such because of their resemblance to legumes. A coffee bean is a seed of the Coffea plant and the source for coffee. It is the pit inside the red or purple fruit, often referred to as a cherry. Just like ordinary cherries, the coffee fruit is also a so-called stone fruit.

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