roseate tern

noun

: a medium-sized tern (Sterna dougallii) that is widespread at sea and in coastal areas of the Atlantic, Pacific, and Indian oceans and that has a faint roseate tinge to the breast in the breeding season

Examples of roseate tern in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
These examples are automatically compiled from online sources to illustrate current usage. Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Plum Island is home to 227 species of birds, including piping plovers, roseate terns, Northern harriers, ospreys and American oystercatchers, according to Save the Sound’s Envision Plum Island Report. Ed Stannard, Hartford Courant, 19 June 2024 One endangered species being monitored is the roseate tern on Buzzards Bay off the coast of Massachusetts. New York Times, 17 June 2022 Sightings at Race Point in Provincetown included a royal tern, 5 parasitic jaegers, 1,100 laughing gulls, 2 least terns, 175 roseate terns, 2,800 common terns, 4 species of shearwater, and 2 common ravens. BostonGlobe.com, 24 Sep. 2019 At Gooseberry Neck, there were 84 black scoters, three ruddy turnstones, three roseate terns, a great shearwater, a Northern gannet, two cliff swallows, and two orchard orioles. BostonGlobe.com, 30 June 2019 Race Point sightings included a little gull and a royal tern, as well as 3 American oystercatchers, 14 piping plovers, 2 parasitic jaegers, 425 least terns, 3 black terns, 26 roseate terns, and 7 Manx shearwaters. BostonGlobe.com, 24 June 2019 Sightings from Race Point in Provincetown included a mix of lingering winter birds like Pacific loon, Iceland gulls, and snowy owl, along with new spring arrivals like parasitic jaegers, common terns, a roseate tern, and sooty shearwaters. BostonGlobe.com, 7 May 2018 Also spotted on the island were six common loons, two American golden-plovers, two roseate terns, and a seaside sparrow. BostonGlobe.com, 30 June 2018

Word History

First Known Use

circa 1813, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of roseate tern was circa 1813

Dictionary Entries Near roseate tern

Cite this Entry

“Roseate tern.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/roseate%20tern. Accessed 8 Nov. 2024.

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