goatsucker
Appearance
English
[edit]Etymology
[edit]From goat + sucker, from the ancient folk belief that they sucked milk from goats.
Noun
[edit]goatsucker (plural goatsuckers)
- Any bird in the nightjar family Caprimulgidae.
- 1886, Peter Christen Asbjørnsen, translated by H.L. Brækstad, Folk and Fairy Tales, page 286:
- […] ah, that was the woodcock - and the goatsucker - yes, yes! it sounds strange to him, that hasn't heard him […]
Alternative forms
[edit]Translations
[edit]Caprimulgidae