finch

Etymology

From Middle English fynch, from Old English finċ, from Proto-Germanic *finkiz (compare Dutch vink, German Fink), from Proto-Indo-European *(s)pingos (“chaffinch”). Compare Welsh pinc (“finch”), Ancient Greek σπίγγος (spíngos, “chaffinch”), Russian пе́нка (pénka, “wren”), Sanskrit फिङ्गक (phiṅgaka, “drongo, shrike”).

noun

  1. Any Eurasian goldfinch (of species Carduelis carduelis. syn. Fringilla carduelis).
  2. Any bird of the family Fringillidae, seed-eating passerine birds, native chiefly to the Northern Hemisphere and usually having a conical beak.
  3. Any bird of other families of similar appearance to members of family Fringillidae.

verb

  1. To hunt for finches, to go finching.

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