owlet

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English

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Two owlets found at the Craters of the Moon lava fields in Idaho

Etymology

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From owl +‎ -et. Compare howlet.

Pronunciation

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Noun

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owlet (plural owlets)

  1. diminutive of owl
    • c. 1590 (date written), G[eorge] P[eele], The Old Wiues Tale. [], London: [] Iohn Danter, for Raph Hancocke, and Iohn Hardie, [], published 1595, →OCLC:
      And in faith Sir unlesse your hospitalitie doe releeve us, wee are like to wander with a sorrowfull hey ho, among the owlets, & Hobgoblins of the Forrest []
    • c. 1606 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Tragedie of Macbeth”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies [] (First Folio), London: [] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act IV, scene i]:
      Adder’s fork and blind-worm’s sting,
      Lizard’s leg and owlet’s wing,
      For a charm of powerful trouble,
      Like a hell-broth boil and bubble.
    • 1798, Samuel Taylor Coleridge, Fears in Solitude[1], London: J. Johnson, pages 4–5:
      [] and bold with joy,
      Forth from his dark and lonely hiding-place
      (Portentous sight) the owlet, ATHEISM,
      Sailing on obscene wings athwart the noon,
      Drops his blue-fringed lids, and holds them close,
      And, hooting at the glorious sun in heaven,
      Cries out, “where is it?”
  2. A young owl; owling.
  3. One of a species of small owls, such as Athene noctua.
  4. An owlet moth.
    • 2023, John Himmelman, Discovering Moths, page 39:
      Noticeable features found in many of the owlets are two markings that often appear on the upper forewings.

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References

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Anagrams

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