Adjacent Words

gray hen definitions

	Tweet

WordNet (r) 3.0 (2005)

n
1: female black grouse [syn: greyhen, grayhen, grey hen, gray hen, heath hen]

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Gray Gray, a. [Compar. Grayer; superl. Grayest.] [OE. gray, grey, AS. gr[=ae]g, gr[=e]g; akin to D. graauw, OHG. gr[=a]o, G. grau, Dan. graa, Sw. gr[*a], Icel. gr[=a]r.] [Written also grey.] 1. White mixed with black, as the color of pepper and salt, or of ashes, or of hair whitened by age; sometimes, a dark mixed color; as, the soft gray eye of a dove. These gray and dun colors may be also produced by mixing whites and blacks. --Sir I. Newton. 2. Gray-haired; gray-headed; of a gray color; hoary. 3. Old; mature; as, gray experience. Ames. Gray antimony (Min.), stibnite. Gray buck (Zo["o]l.), the chickara. Gray cobalt (Min.), smaltite. Gray copper (Min.), tetrahedrite. Gray duck (Zo["o]l.), the gadwall; also applied to the female mallard. Gray falcon (Zo["o]l.) the peregrine falcon. Gray Friar. See Franciscan, and Friar. Gray hen (Zo["o]l.), the female of the blackcock or black grouse. See Heath grouse. Gray mill or millet (Bot.), a name of several plants of the genus Lithospermum; gromwell. Gray mullet (Zo["o]l.) any one of the numerous species of the genus Mugil, or family Mugilid[ae], found both in the Old World and America; as the European species (M. capito, and M. auratus), the American striped mullet (M. albula), and the white or silver mullet (M. Braziliensis). See Mullet. Gray owl (Zo["o]l.), the European tawny or brown owl (Syrnium aluco). The great gray owl (Ulula cinerea) inhabits arctic America. Gray parrot (Zo["o]l.), a parrot (Psittacus erithacus), very commonly domesticated, and noted for its aptness in learning to talk. Gray pike. (Zo["o]l.) See Sauger. Gray snapper (Zo["o]l.), a Florida fish; the sea lawyer. See Snapper. Gray snipe (Zo["o]l.), the dowitcher in winter plumage. Gray whale (Zo["o]l.), a rather large and swift California whale (Rhachianectes glaucus), formerly taken in large numbers in the bays; -- called also grayback, devilfish, and hardhead.

Webster's 1913 Dictionary

Heath Heath, n. [OE. heth waste land, the plant heath, AS. h??; akin to D. & G. heide, Icel. hei?r waste land, Dan. hede, Sw. hed, Goth. haipi field, L. bucetum a cow pasture; cf. W. coed a wood, Skr. ksh?tra field. [root]20.] 1. (Bot.) (a) A low shrub (Erica, or Calluna, vulgaris), with minute evergreen leaves, and handsome clusters of pink flowers. It is used in Great Britain for brooms, thatch, beds for the poor, and for heating ovens. It is also called heather, and ling. (b) Also, any species of the genus Erica, of which several are European, and many more are South African, some of great beauty. See Illust. of Heather. 2. A place overgrown with heath; any cheerless tract of country overgrown with shrubs or coarse herbage. Their stately growth, though bare, Stands on the blasted heath. --Milton Heath cock (Zo["o]l.), the blackcock. See Heath grouse (below). Heath grass (Bot.), a kind of perennial grass, of the genus Triodia (T. decumbens), growing on dry heaths. Heath grouse, or Heath game (Zo["o]l.), a European grouse (Tetrao tetrix), which inhabits heats; -- called also black game, black grouse, heath poult, heath fowl, moor fowl. The male is called, heath cock, and blackcock; the female, heath hen, and gray hen. Heath hen. (Zo["o]l.) See Heath grouse (above). Heath pea (bot.), a species of bitter vetch (Lathyris macrorhizus), the tubers of which are eaten, and in Scotland are used to flavor whisky. Heath throstle (Zo["o]l.), a European thrush which frequents heaths; the ring ouzel.