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jaçana

[ zhah-suh-nah, jah- ]
/ ˌʒɑ səˈnɑ, ˌdʒɑ- /
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noun
any of several tropical, ploverlike, aquatic birds of the family Jacanidae, most of them having extremely long toes and claws for walking on floating water plants.
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Also called lily-trotter.

Origin of jaçana

1640–50; <Portuguese jaçanã<Tupi jasaná

Words nearby jaçana

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use jaçana in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for jaçana

jaçana
/ (ˌʒɑːsəˈnɑː, ˌdʒæ-) /

noun
any bird of the family Jacanidae, of tropical and subtropical marshy regions, having long legs and very long toes that enable walking on floating plants: order CharadriiformesAlso called: lily-trotter

Word Origin for jaçana

C18: from Portuguese jaçanã, from Tupi-Guarani jasaná
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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