quail
(noun) small gallinaceous game birds
quail
(noun) flesh of quail; suitable for roasting or broiling if young; otherwise must be braised
flinch, squinch, funk, cringe, shrink, wince, recoil, quail
(verb) draw back, as with fear or pain; “she flinched when they showed the slaughtering of the calf”
Source: WordNet® 3.1
quail (third-person singular simple present quails, present participle quailing, simple past and past participle quailed)
(intransitive) To waste away; to fade, to wither [from 15th c.]
(transitive, now, rare) To daunt or frighten (someone) [from 16th c.]
(intransitive) To lose heart or courage; to be daunted or fearful. [from 16th c.]
(intransitive) Of courage, faith, etc.: to slacken, to give way. [from 16th c.]
quail (plural quails)
Any of various small game birds of the genera Coturnix, Anurophasis or Perdicula in the Old World family Phasianidae or of the New World family Odontophoridae.
(uncountable) The meat from this bird eaten as food.
(obsolete) A prostitute, so called because the quail was thought to be a very amorous bird.
quail (third-person singular simple present quails, present participle quailing, simple past and past participle quailed)
(obsolete) To curdle or coagulate, as milk does.
• quali
Quail
A surname.
• quali
Source: Wiktionary
Quail, v. i. [imp. & p. p. Qualled; p. pr. & vb. n. Qualling.] Etym: [AS.cwelan to die, perish; akin to cwalu violent death, D. kwaal pain, G. qual torment, OHG. quelan to suffer torment, Lith. gelti to hurt, gela pain. Cf. Quell.]
1. To die; to perish; hence, to wither; to fade. [Obs.] Spenser.
2. To become quelled; to become cast down; to sink under trial or apprehension of danger; to lose the spirit and power of resistance; to lose heart; to give way; to shrink; to cower. The atheist power shall quail, and confess his fears. I. Taylor. Stouter hearts than a woman's have quailed in this terrible winter. Longfellow.
Syn.
– to cower; flinch; shrink; quake; tremble; blench; succumb; yield.
Quail, v. t. Etym: [Cf. Quell.]
Definition: To cause to fail in spirit or power; to quell; to crush; to subdue. [Obs.] Spenser.
Quail, v. i. Etym: [OF. coaillier, F. cailler, from L. coagulare. See Coagulate.]
Definition: To curdle; to coagulate, as milk. [Obs.] Holland.
Quail, n. Etym: [OF. quaille, F. caille, LL. quaquila, qualia, qualea, of Dutch or German origin; cf. D. kwakkel, kwartel, OHG. wahtala, G. wachtel.]
1. (Zoöl.)
Definition: Any gallinaceous bird belonging to Coturnix and several allied genera of the Old World, especially the common European quail (C. communis), the rain quail (C. Coromandelica) of India, the stubble quail (C. pectoralis), and the Australian swamp quail (Synoicus australis).
2. (Zoöl.)
Definition: Any one of several American partridges belonging to Colinus, Callipepla, and allied genera, especially the bobwhite (called Virginia quail, and Maryland quail), and the California quail (Calipepla Californica).
3. (Zoöl.)
Definition: Any one of numerous species of Turnix and allied genera, native of the Old World, as the Australian painted quail (Turnix varius). See Turnix.
4. A prostitute; -- so called because the quail was thought to be a very amorous bird.[Obs.] Shak. Bustard quail (Zoöl.), a small Asiatic quail-like bird of the genus Turnix, as T. taigoor, a black-breasted species, and the hill bustard quail (T. ocellatus). See Turnix.
– Button quail (Zoöl.), one of several small Asiatic species of Turnix, as T. Sykesii, which is said to be the smallest game bird of India.
– Mountain quail. See under Mountain.
– Quail call, a call or pipe for alluring quails into a net or within range.
– Quail dove (Zoöl.), any one of several American ground pigeons belonging to Geotrygon and allied genera.
– Quail hawk (Zoöl.), the New Zealand sparrow hawk (Hieracidea Novæ-Hollandiæ).
– Quail pipe. See Quail call, above.
– Quail snipe (Zoöl.), the dowitcher, or red-breasted snipe; -- called also robin snipe, and brown snipe.
– Sea quail (Zoöl.), the turnstone. [Local, U. S.]
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition
23 November 2024
(adjective) concerned primarily with theories or hypotheses rather than practical considerations; “theoretical science”
The world’s most expensive coffee costs more than US$700 per kilogram. Asian palm civet – a cat-like creature in Indonesia, eats fruits, including select coffee cherries. It excretes partially digested seeds that produce a smooth, less acidic brew of coffee called kopi luwak.
