Waterfowl

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. Birds that swim and live on or near water, such as ducks, geese, and swans
2. Any type of bird that is adapted to aquatic environments and includes species like ducks, geese, and swans
3. Birds that are typically found in wetland areas, which includes various species like ducks, swans, and geese

Etymology: Old English speakers had a word for these birds that described how they fed: "dopfugel," literally "dipping-fowl," used for waterfowl and the moorhen in particular. The image is of a bird that dips its head or body under the water to forage, a more precise picture than the modern umbrella term offers. The English word that followed is a plain compound of "water" and "fowl," the latter meaning any bird, from Old English "fugol." It appeared in Middle English as "waterfoul" and "water-foul," with the two parts joined as a single unit of meaning. Its sense has stayed fairly stable: it names birds tied to wet habitats, and the category has been defined by where a bird lives rather than by any single shared anatomy or behaviour.

Synonyms: duck, goose, swans, aquatic birds, puddle duck