avadavat

Noun

avadavat (plural avadavats)

1. Any of various estrildid finches of the genus Amandava, especially the red avadavat, Amandava amandava, of India and Southeast Asia, commonly kept and bred as a cagebird; also known as Java sparrow.
   • SIR OLIVER. What!—has he never transmitted—you—Bullion—Rupees—Pagodas!
     SURFACE. O Dear Sir—Nothing of the kind—no—no—a few Presents now and then—china, shawls, congo Tea, Avadavats—and indian Crackers—little more, believe me.1777, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, The School for Scandal, V.i
   • And now it has flown to new scenes of delight,
     Where Venus's pigeons long cooing have sat,
     While Lesbia's famed sparrow with envy moults whitec. 1785, Richard Brinsley Sheridan, "Elegy on the Lamented Death of an Avadavat" (undated manuscript preserved by his wife Elizabeth Ann Linley Sheridan is printed in Clementina Black, The Linleys of...

   Synonyms:

   amadavat