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pelican definition

peli·can (pel′i kən)

noun

any of a genus (Pelecanus, family Pelecanidae) of pelecaniform birds with a distensible pouch which hangs from the large lower bill and is used to scoop up or store fish

Etymology: ME < OE pellicane < LL(Ec) pelicanus < Gr pelekan (used in LXX to transl. Heb ḳā'ath, bird of prey), akin to pelekas, woodpecker, prob. < pelekys, an ax (from the shape of the bill)

Webster's New World College Dictionary Copyright © 2009 by Wiley Publishing, Inc., Cleveland, Ohio.
Used by arrangement with John Wiley & Sons, Inc.

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