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nycticorax. In DICTIOUS you will not only get to know all the dictionary meanings for the word
nycticorax, but we will also tell you about its etymology, its characteristics and you will know how to say
nycticorax in singular and plural. Everything you need to know about the word
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Latin
Noun
nycticorax m (genitive nycticoracis); third declension
- nightjar, bittern or similar bird
c. 600 CE – 625 CE,
Isidorus Hispalensis,
Etymologiae 12.7.41:
- Nycticorax ipsa est noctua, quia noctem amat. Est enim avis lūcifuga, et sōlem vidēre nōn patītur.
- The nightjar itself is nocturnal, because it loves the night. For it is a light-fleeing bird, and cannot bear to see the sun.
Usage notes
- Often translated (from Leviticus 11: 16) as night raven:- a bird whose booming call was regarded as an omen.
Declension
Third-declension noun.
References