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owl

Pronunciation: /aʊ(ə)l/

The English word “owl” has 6 meanings listed here.

noun

  1. Any of various birds of prey of the order Strigiformes, families Strigidae and Tytonidae, that are primarily nocturnal and have forward-looking, binocular vision, limited eye movement, and good hearing.
  2. A person seen as having owl-like characteristics, especially appearing wise or serious, or being nocturnally active.
  3. An owl pigeon.
  4. A politician with moderate views that are neither hawkish nor dovish.
  5. Any of various nymphalid butterflies, especially in the genus Caligo, having large eyespots on the wings.

verb

  1. To smuggle contraband goods.

Etymology

From Middle English howle, oul, oule, owle, owlle, from Old English ūle, from Proto-West Germanic *uwwulā, from Proto-Germanic *uwwulǭ (“owl”), diminutive of *uwwǭ (“eagle-owl”), of imitative origin or a variant of *ūfaz, *ūfǭ, from Proto-Indo-European *up- (“to cry out”). Cognates Cognate with Scots oul (“owl”), Saterland Frisian Ule (“owl”), West Frisian ûle (“owl”), Cimbrian aul (“owl”), Dutch…

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