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shrike definition

shrike (s̸hrīk)

noun

any of a family (Laniidae) of predatory, shrill-voiced passerine birds with hooked beaks, gray, black, and white plumage, and long tails: most types feed on insects, some on small birds, frogs, etc., which they may impale on thorns before eating

Etymology: via dial. < OE scric, thrush, shrike, akin to ME schriken, shriek

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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