tern

noun

ˈtərn 

: any of various chiefly marine birds (subfamily Sterninae of the family Laridae and especially genus Sterna) that differ from the related gulls in usually smaller size, a more slender build, a sharply pointed bill, narrower wings, and an often forked tail

Illustration of tern

Examples of tern in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

Throughout the marshes and along sandy beaches, visitors will see pelicans wading around piers with their gular pouches full of fish, ospreys, warblers, terns, herons, egrets, black-necked stilts, and roseate spoonbills, which are a vibrant bubblegum-pink color, due to their shrimp diet. —Amanda Ogle, Travel + Leisure, 8 Feb. 2025

There were terns – with their yellow beaks and black heads – stumbling about having seizures on the sand. —Gabrielle Emanuel, NPR, 7 Feb. 2025

Wild birds like ducks, geese, swans, storks, plovers, sandpipers, gulls and terns are all susceptible to bird flu. —Stephen Underwood, Hartford Courant, 24 Jan. 2025

The tiny island is home to brown and white pelicans, roseate spoonbills, owls, ospreys, terns, herons, egrets, and other shore birds. —Kara Franker, Southern Living, 4 Jan. 2025

Word History

Etymology

of Scandinavian origin; akin to Danish terne tern

First Known Use

1678, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing tern

• arctic tern
• least tern
• roseate tern
• sooty tern

Rhymes for tern

• churns
• earns
• ferns
• kerns
• learns
• spurns
• sterns
• terns
• turns
• yearns
• adjourns
• concerns

Kids Definition

tern

noun

ˈtərn 

: any of numerous sea birds that often have a forked tail, black cap, and white or gray body and that in comparison to the related gulls have a smaller and slenderer body and bill and narrower wings