owl

See also: OWL

English

A northern spotted owl (Strix occidentalis caurina)

Etymology

From Middle English oule, owle, from Old English ūle, from Proto-West Germanic *uwwilā, from Proto-Germanic *uwwalǭ (compare West Frisian ûle, Dutch uil, Danish and Norwegian ugle, German Eule), diminutive of *uwwǭ (“eagle-owl”) (compare German Uhu), of imitative origin or a variant of *ūfaz, *ūfǭ (compare Old English ūf or hūf, Swedish uv (“horned owl”), Bavarian Auf), from Proto-Indo-European *up- (compare Latvian ũpis (“eagle-owl”), Czech úpět (“to wail, howl”), Avestan 𐬎𐬟𐬌𐬌𐬈𐬌𐬨𐬌 (ufiieimi, “to call out”). A Germanic variant *uwwilǭ was the source of Old High German ūwila (German Eule).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /aʊ(ə)l/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -aʊl, -aʊəl

Noun

owl (plural owls)

2. Any of various birds of prey of the order Strigiformes that are primarily nocturnal and have forward-looking, binocular vision, limited eye movement, and good hearing. [from 8th c.]
3. (by extension) A person seen as having owl-like characteristics, especially appearing wise or serious, or being nocturnally active. [from 14th c.]

   Antonym: lark

4. An owl pigeon. [from 18th c.]
5. (politics, uncommon) A politician with moderate views that are neither hawkish nor dovish.
6. Any of various nymphalid butterflies, especially in the genus Caligo, having large eyespots on the wings.

Derived terms

• Acadian owl
• as wise as an owl
• bare-legged owl
• barn owl
• barred owl
• blind as an owl
• boobook owl
• boreal owl
• brown owl
• buffy fish owl
• burrowing owl
• disc owl
• disk owl
• drunk as a boiled owl
• drunk as an owl
• eagle owl, eagle-owl (Bubo bubo etc.)
• elf owl
• Eurasian eagle owl
• Eurasian pygmy owl
• Eurasian scops owl
• fishing owl
• fish owl
• flammulated owl
• gnome owl
• great grey owl
• great horned owl
• hawk owl, hawk-owl
• hoot owl
• hoot owl shift
• hoot owl trail
• horned owl
• ivy owl
• jar-owl
• Lapland owl
• laughing owl
• little owl
• long eared owl, long-eared owl
• monkey-faced owl
• mottled owl
• night owl
• night-owl
• northern hawk owl
• owl bus
• owl-butterfly, owl butterfly (Caligo spp.)
• owler
• owlery
• owlet
• owl-eyed
• owl-faced monkey
• owlful
• Owlglass
• owl hoot
• owl hoot trail
• owling
• owlish
• owlishly
• owlishness
• owl jug
• owlless
• owl light
• owl-light
• owl-like
• owl monkey
• owl moth
• owl-moth
• owl parrot
• owl pigeon
• owl-swallow
• owl train
• owly
• Pel's fishing owl
• powerful owl
• pygmy owl
• rain owl
• red owl
• Richardson's owl
• rufous owl
• scops owl, scops-owl (Otus scops etc)
• screech owl, screech-owl
• sea-owl
• shivering owl
• short-eared owl
• shriek owl
• silver owl
• snowy owl
• Soumagne's owl
• spectral owl
• spotted eagle-owl
• spotted owl
• squinch owl
• striped owl
• stuffed owl
• superb owl
• tawny owl
• Tengmalm's owl
• Ural owl
• western barn owl
• white owl
• wise as an owl
• wood owl

 

Translations

bird

• Abkhaz: аты (atʼə)
• Acehnese: jampôk
• Adyghe: кукумау (kʷukʷumawu)
• Afrikaans: uil (af)
• Ainu: チカㇷ゚ (cikap)
• Albanian: kukuvajkë (sq) f, buf (sq) m, hut (sq) m
• Altai: мечиртке (mečirtke)
• Amharic: ጉጉት (gugut)
• Apache:

  Western Apache: múh

• Arabic: بُومَة f (būma)

  Egyptian Arabic: بومة f (būma), قويق m (ʔuwēʔ)

  Hijazi Arabic: بومة f (būma)

  North Levantine Arabic: بومة f (būme)

• Aragonese: bobón m, baueso m, craberet m
• Armenian: բու (hy) (bu)
• Assamese: ফেঁচা (phẽsa)
• Assyrian Neo-Aramaic: please add this translation if you can
• Asturian: curuxa (ast) f
• Aymara: juku (ay)
• Azerbaijani: bayquş (az)
• Banjarese: kukulai
• Bashkir: ябалаҡ (yabalaq)
• Basque: mozo, hontz (eu), gauhontz, hontza
• Bau Bidayuh: buwo
• Belarusian: сава́ f (savá)
• Bengali: পেঁচা (bn) (pẽca), উলূক (bn) (uluk), পেচক (bn) (pecok)
• Bhojpuri: कुचकुचवा (kucᵊkucᵊvā), उरुआ (uruā), उल्लू (ullū)
• Borôro: tagogo
• Bouyei: rogyahheh, rogjaucmyaus
• Breton: toud (br) m, kaouenn (br) f
• Brunei Malay: burung antu
• Bulgarian: птица от разред сови (ptica ot razred sovi) (little owl - кукумявка)
• Burmese: please add this translation if you can
• Buryat: бэгсэргэ (begserge)
• Carpathian Rusyn: совы f (sovŷ)
• Catalan: òliba (ca) f, mussol (ca) m
• Cebuano: ngiwngiw, mingok
• Central Bontoc: koop
• Central Sierra Miwok: huh·umi-
• Chakma: please add this translation if you can
• Chamicuro: ma'sheti
• Chechen: бухӏа (buha)
• Cherokee: ᎤᎫᎫ (ugugu)
• Cheyenne: vé'kėséhemėstaa'e
• Chickasaw: oopa
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 貓頭鷹／猫头鹰 (maau¹ tau⁴ jing¹), 鴞／鸮 (hiu¹) (formal), 鴟鴞／鸱鸮 (ci¹ hiu¹) (formal)

  Eastern Min: 貓王鳥／猫王鸟 (mà-uòng-cēu)

  Hakka: 貓頭鳥／猫头鸟 (meu-thèu-tiâu)

  Hokkien: 暗光鳥／暗光鸟 (zh-min-nan) (àm-kong-chiáu), 貓頭鳥／猫头鸟 (zh-min-nan) (niau-thâu-chiáu), 貓頭鷹／猫头鹰 (zh-min-nan) (niau-thâu-eng), 鴣黃／鸪黄 (ko͘-n̂g, ko͘-ûiⁿ), 暗晏鳥／暗晏鸟 (àm-òaⁿ-chiáu), 鴟鴞／鸱鸮 (zh-min-nan) (chhi-hiau), 鷦鶹／鹪鹠 (chiau-liû), 鵂鶹／鸺鹠 (zh-min-nan) (hiu-liû), 公黃／公黄 (kong-hûiⁿ), 姑嫂鳥／姑嫂鸟 (ko͘-só-chiáu), 貓頭姑／猫头姑 (niau-thâu-ko͘)

  Mandarin: 貓頭鷹／猫头鹰 (zh) (māotóuyīng), 夜貓子／夜猫子 (zh) (yèmāozi) (colloquial), 鴞／鸮 (zh) (xiāo) (formal), 角鴟／角鸱 (zh) (jiǎochī) (formal), 梟鳥／枭鸟 (zh) (xiāoniǎo) (formal), 鵂鶹／鸺鹠 (zh) (xiūliú) (formal), 鴟鵂／鸱鸺 (zh) (chīxiū) (formal), 鴟鴞／鸱鸮 (zh) (chīxiāo) (formal)

• Chukchi: тыӄыԓ (tyqyḷ)
• Chuvash: тӑмана (tămana)
• Classical Syriac: ܒܘܡܐ c (būmā)
• Comanche: mupitsʉ
• Cornish: cowan f, kowan f
• Corsican: ciocciu m
• Crimean Tatar: kökökmiyav, muratquş
• Czech: sova (cs) f
• Dalmatian: civet m
• Danish: ugle (da) c
• Dutch: uil (nl) m
• Dzongkha: འུག་པ ('ug pa)
• Elfdalian: ugel f
• Erzya: please add this translation if you can
• Esperanto: strigo (eo)
• Estonian: öökull (et), kakk
• Evenki: itiknija
• Faroese: ugla, (rare) ugli m, (rare) úla f
• Fijian: lulu
• Finnish: pöllö (fi); pöllölintu (fi) (zoology)
• Franco-Provençal: please add this translation if you can
• French: hibou (fr) m, chouette (fr) f
• Friulian: çus
• Galician: moucho (gl) m
• Georgian: ბუ (bu)
• German: Eule (de) f, Uhu (de) m, Eulenvogel m (order Strigiformes)

  Old High German: ūwila f

• Greek: κουκουβάγια (el) f (koukouvágia)

  Ancient: γλαῦξ f (glaûx)

• Greenlandic: uppik
• Guaraní: ñakurutû, urukure'a, suinda
• Gujarati: please add this translation if you can
• Haitian Creole: koukou
• Hausa: mujiya
• Hawaiian: pueo
• Hebrew: ינשוף (he) (yanshuf), תנשמת (he) (tinshemeth), לילית (he) (lilith), אוח (he) (oakh)
• Hiligaynon: búkaw
• Hindi: उल्लू (hi) m (ullū), पेचक (hi) m (pecak), उलूक (hi) m (ulūk), कुचकुचवा (hi) m (kuckucvā), खुसट (hi) m (khusaṭ), घूक (hi) m (ghūk), घूघू (hi) m (ghūghū), घुघ्घू (hi) m (ghughghū), घुग्घू (hi) m (ghugghū)
• Hopi: hotsko
• Hungarian: bagoly (hu)
• Ibanag: lappang
• Icelandic: ugla (is) f
• Ido: strigo (io)
• Igbo: ikwikwi
• Ilocano: kullaaw, puek
• Indonesian: burung hantu (id), burung suangi (id), celepuk (id), jampuk (id), kokok beluk (id), pungguk (id)
• Ingush: бов (bov)
• Interlingua: uluco
• Irish: ulchabhán (ga) m, cailleach oíche f
• Italian: gufo (it) m (big), civetta (it) f (small)
• Ivatan: bantuluk
• Japanese: フクロウ (ja) (fukurō), 梟 (ja) (ふくろう, fukurō)
• Javanese:

  Carakan: ꦢꦫꦺꦱ꧀ (darés)

  Rumi: darès (jv)

• Kalasha: uhúk
• Kalmyk: һурвлһ (ğurvlğ)
• Kannada: ಗೂಬೆ (kn) (gūbe), ಘೂಕ (kn) (ghūka)
• Karaim: sova
• Kapampangan: kulayu
• Kashubian: sowa f
• Kazakh: жапалақ (japalaq)
• Khmer: ទីទុយ (km) (tiituy), មៀម (km) (miəm)
• Kimaragang: puwok
• Komi-Permyak: сюзь (śuź)
• Kongo: dikuti, kifungu
• Korean: 올빼미 (ko) (olppaemi), 부엉이 (ko) (bueong'i)
• Kumyk: обуркъуш (oburquş), обуръябалакъ (oburyabalaq)
• Kurdish:

  Central Kurdish: کوند (kund)

  Northern Kurdish: kund (ku), bu (ku), pû (ku), pepûk (ku)

• Kyrgyz: үкү (ky) (ükü)
• Ladin: ciuita
• Lao: ເຄົ້າ (lo) (khao)
• Latgalian: palāda, (some species) opūgs m
• Latin: būbō m, noctua f, strix (la) f, ulula f (screech owl), parra f (barn owl)
• Latvian: pūce, apogs (some species), ūpis m (eagle-owl)
• Limburgish: uul (li) m
• Lingala: esulúngútu
• Lithuanian: pelėda (lt) f; also apuokas (lt) m (some species)
• Livonian: būs
• Low German:

  Dutch Low Saxon: uul f

  German Low German: Uul (nds) f

• Lun Bawang: fuek
• Luxembourgish: Eil (lb) f, Échel (lb) f
• Macedonian: був (buv), ут m (ut), утка f (utka)
• Malagasy: vorombozaka (mg), vorondolo (mg)
• Malay: burung hantu (ms), burung suangi, pungguk
• Malayalam: മൂങ്ങ (ml) (mūṅṅa)
• Maltese: kokka f
• Manx: hullad f
• Maori: please add this translation if you can
• Marathi: घुबड n (ghubaḍ)
• Mari:

  Eastern Mari: тумна (tumna)

  Western Mari: тымана (tymana)

• Maricopa: mmdii
• Mauritian Creole: ibou
• Mazanderani: کوربی (kurebi), پیت کتله (pitketele)
• Mi'kmaq: gu'gu'gwes anim
• Mirandese: queruja f
• Moksha: корож (korož)
• Mongolian: шар шувуу (šar šuvuu), ууль (mn) (uulʹ)
• Montagnais: uhu
• Nanai: оксаран (oksaran)
• Nanticoke: quoo-waant
• Navajo: néʼéshjaaʼ
• Nepali: लाटोकोसेरो (ne) (lāṭokosero), उल्लू (ne) (ullū), उल्लु (ne) (ullu), उलूक (ne) (ulūk)
• Norman: cahouain m
• Norn: jugla f
• Northern Sotho: leribiši
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: ugle m or f

  Nynorsk: ugle f

• O'odham: cukut
• Occitan: chòta f
• Odia: ପେଚା (or) (pecā)
• Ojibwe: gookooko'oo
• Old English: ūle f
• Old Norse: ugla
• Old Occitan: cavec m
• Oromo: uruungguu
• Ossetian: уыг (wyg), сидахъ (sidaq)
• Pangasinan: kolayot
• Pannonian Rusyn: сова f (sova)
• Pashto: کونګ (kong)
• Persian: جغد (fa) (joğd), بوف (fa) (buf)
• Plautdietsch: Ul f
• Polabian: töľă f
• Polish: sowa (pl) f
• Portuguese: coruja (pt) f, estrige f
• Punjabi: please add this translation if you can
• Quechua: tuku, paqpaka, ch'usiqa, huku, juku
• Rohingya: feñsa
• Romanian: bufniță (ro) f
• Romansch: tschuetta f
• Russian: сова́ (ru) f (sová), фи́лин (ru) m (fílin), сыч (ru) m (syč)
• Sakizaya: deku
• Sami:

  Inari Sami: skyelfi, oppuu

  Northern Sami: skuolfi, idjaloddi

  Skolt Sami: hõˊppi

• Samoan: lulu
• Sanskrit: उलूक (sa) m (ulūka), पेचक (sa) m (pecaka), घूक (sa) m (ghūka)
• Santali: ᱫᱩᱱᱫᱩ (dundu), ᱠᱚᱠᱚᱨ (kôkôr)
• Sardinian: tirulia, cuccumeu, cuccumiau
• Saterland Frisian: Uule f
• Scots: yuggle
• Scottish Gaelic: cailleach-oidhche f, comhachag f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: сова f, јеја f, јејина f, буљина f

  Roman: sova (sh) f, jeja (sh) f, jejina (sh) f, buljina (sh) f

• Sherpa: འུག་པ ('ug pa)
• Shona: zizi
• Sicilian: cuccu (scn) m (big, Bubo bubo), cucca (scn) f (small, Athene noctua)
• Silesian: uojle f
• Sinhalese: please add this translation if you can
• Slovak: sova (sk) f, výr m
• Slovene: sova (sl) f
• Sorbian:

  Lower Sorbian: sowa f

  Upper Sorbian: sowa f

• Southern Altai: ӱкӱ (ükü)
• Spanish: búho (es) m, lechuza (es) f, tecolote (es) m (Mexico, Guatemala, Honduras), mochuelo (es) m (Spain), autillo (es) m (Spain), cárabo (es) m (Spain), cuco (es) m (Cuba), sijú cotunto m (Cuba), caburé (es) m (Argentina), chuncho (es) m (Argentina, Chile), anteojo (es) m (Peru), tucúquere (es) m (Peru, Bolivia, Argentina, Chile)
• Sundanese: bueuk (su)
• Swahili: bundi (sw)
• Swedish: uggla (sv) c, uv (sv) c
• Sylheti: ꠚꠦꠌꠣ (fésa), ꠙꠦꠌꠣ (fesa)
• Tagal Murut: puvok
• Tagalog: kuwago
• Tajik: ҷуғз (tg) (juġz), бум (tg) (bum)
• Tamil: ஆந்தை (ta) (āntai), கூகை (ta) (kūkai)
• Taos: kǫ̏wéna
• Tatar: ябалак (tt) (yabalaq), байгыш (tt) (baygış)
• Telugu: గుడ్లగూబ (te) (guḍlagūba), గూబ (te) (gūba)
• Thai: นกฮูก (th) (nók hûuk)
• Tibetan: འུག་པ། ('ug pa)
• Tigrinya: ጉንጓ (gungʷa)
• Tocharian B: uluke
• Tok Pisin: pugu
• Turkish: baykuş (tr)
• Turkmen: baýguş (tk)
• Tuvan: межерген (mejergen)
• Udi: гуъгеъл (gu̱ge̱l)
• Ukrainian: сова (uk) f (sova), сич m (syč)
• Urdu: الو m (ullū)
• Uyghur: مۈشۈك ياپىلاق (müshük yapilaq), ھۇۋقۇش (huwqush)
• Uzbek: boyqush (uz), boyo'g'li (uz), yapaloqqush (uz)
• Veps: hir'pulo
• Vietnamese: cú (vi)
• Vilamovian: aojł f
• Volapük: lül (vo)
• Walloon: houprale (wa) f
• Waray-Waray: bukaw
• Welsh: tylluan (cy) f, gwdihŵ (cy) f
• West Coast Bajau: puok
• West Frisian: ûle
• Wolof: looy mi (wo)
• Yakut: мэкчиргэ (mekcirge)
• Yámana: sírra
• Yiddish: סאָווע f (sove)
• Yoruba: òwìwí
• Zazaki: kund (diq)
• Zealandic: ulen m
• Zhuang: roeggyaeujmeuz
• Zulu: isikhova (zu) class 7/8

person with owl-like characteristics

owl pigeon — see owl pigeon

politician with moderate views

type of nymphalid butterfly

See also

• hoot
• to-whit, to-whoo
• whoo
• who
• hoo
• hoohoo

Further reading

• owl on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Verb

owl (third-person singular simple present owls, present participle owling, simple past and past participle owled)

1. (archaic, intransitive) To smuggle contraband goods.

Anagrams

• 'low, LOW, Low, WoL, low, low%