WOODPECKER
woodpecker, peckerwood, pecker
(noun) bird with strong claws and a stiff tail adapted for climbing and a hard chisel-like bill for boring into wood for insects
Source: WordNet® 3.1
Etymology
Noun
woodpecker (plural woodpeckers)
Any bird of many-species subfamily Picinae, with a sharp beak suitable for pecking holes in wood.
(military slang) Type 92 heavy machine gun
Synonyms
• speight, spight
Hypernyms
• picid
Hyponyms
• flicker
Anagrams
• peckerwood
Source: Wiktionary
Wood"peck`er, n. (Zoöl.)
Definition: Any one of numerous species of scansorial birds belonging to
Picus and many allied genera of the family Picidæ.
Note: These birds have the tail feathers pointed and rigid at the tip
to aid in climbing, and a strong chisellike bill with which they are
able to drill holes in the bark and wood of trees in search of insect
larvæ upon which most of the species feed. A few species feed partly
upon the sap of trees (see Sap sucker, under Sap), others spend a
portion of their time on the ground in search of ants and other
insects. The most common European species are the greater spotted
woodpecker (Dendrocopus major), the lesser spotted woodpecker (D.
minor), and the green woodpecker, or yaffle (see Yaffle). The best-
known American species are the pileated woodpecker (see under
Pileated), the ivory-billed woodpecker (Campephilus principalis),
which is one of the largest known species, the red-headed woodpecker,
or red-head (Melanerpes erythrocephalus), the red-bellied woodpecker
(M. Carolinus) (see Chab), the superciliary woodpecker (M.
superciliaris), the hairy woodpecker (Dryobates villosus), the downy
woodpecker (D. pubescens), the three-toed, woodpecker (Picoides
Americanus), the golden-winged woodpecker (see Flicker), and the sap
suckers. See also Carpintero. Woodpecker hornbill (Zoöl.), a black
and white Asiatic hornbill (Buceros pica) which resembles a
woodpecker in color.
Source: Webster’s Unabridged Dictionary 1913 Edition