Word of the Day

: June 23, 2009

corvine

adjective KOR-vyne

What It Means

: of or relating to the crows : resembling a crow

corvine in Context

"Many residents of cities along the Pomona and San Bernardino freeways say, yes, indeed, they've noticed an increase in their corvine neighbors." (Edmund Newton, Los Angeles Times, December 17, 1989)

Did You Know?

Few people crow about "corvine" -- it's not often you'll come across the word -- but it has been part of the English language since the mid-17th century. Like most taxonomic terms, "corvine" has a purely Latin pedigree. "Corvine" is from Latin "corvinus," which in turn is from Latin "corvus," meaning "raven." (The word "raven" itself is from the Old English term "hræfn," which is akin to "hraban," the Old High German word for "raven," and also to "corvus.") Another word from "corvus" is "cormorant," which refers to a dark-colored seabird and comes from Old French words meaning "raven" and "of the sea."