kestrel

Meaning

Noun

• Any of various small falcons of the genus Falco that hover while hunting.
• The common kestrel, Falco tinnunculus.

Related

Similar words

• windhover, staniel

Origin

• From Middle English castrel ("staniel, bird of prey"), from Middle French cresserelle, crecerelle, derivative of crecelle, of obscure origin.
• Derivation from the assumed Vulgar Latin *crepicella, *crepitacillum, a diminutive of crepitāculum, from crepitāre is difficult to explain from a morphological point of view. Instead, possibly from a root *krek-, *krak-, from Middle Dutch craken ("to creak, crack"), from Old Dutch *krakōn ("to crack, creak, emit a cry"), from Proto-West Germanic *krakōn, from Proto-Germanic *krakōną ("to emit a cry, shout"), from Proto-Indo-European *gerg- ("to shout"). Cognate with Old High German krahhōn ("to make a sound, crash"), Old English cracian ("to resound"), French craquer ("to emit a repeated cry, used of birds"). More at creak, crack.