Word.ws English Dictionary

plumage

Syllables: plum·age/ˈpluːmɪd͡ʒ//ˈplumɪd͡ʒ/

plumage noun: the feathers covering the body of a bird collectively.

plumage: the feathers covering the body of a bird collectively
Image: Bill and Mavis (out until 2009!) T from Houston, USA, CC BY-SA 2.0, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun

plumage (countable and uncountable, plural plumages)

  1. (uncountable) The feathers covering the body of a bird collectively.
    • Very fayre ⁊ hardy Hawkes [“Slauon Goshawkes”], large footed, very well penned, theyr downe and plumage excellent fine, their tungs blacke, and their nares large and wide.1575, Francesco Sforzino Vicentino, “Out of the Italian Concerning the Goshawkes and Their Kinds”, in George Turberuile [i.e.. George Turberville], The Booke of Faulconrie or Hauking, for the Onely...
    • [T]he glad Bird [a dove] ſtayes all the day abroad, / And vvondrous proud that he a place had found, / […] / Bathing himſelfe, vvhich long he had not done, / And dryes his feathers in the vvelcome Sunne, / Pruning his plumage, clenſing euery quill, / And going back, he beareth in his bill / An...1630, Michael Drayton, “Noahs Flovd”, in The Muses Elizivm, Lately Discouered, by a New Way over Parnassvs. […], London: […] Thomas Harper, for Iohn Waterson, […], →OCLC, page 112
    Synonyms:
    pennage
  2. (archaic, broadly, uncountable) Feathers used ornamentally; feathering; (countable) a bunch or tuft of such feathers; a plume.
    • [S]he could not but contrast the splendour of the Polish retinues and their plumages and draperies, with the strait-buttoned Prussian dignitaries, all in mere soldier uniform, succinct 'blue coat, white linen gaiters,' and no superfluity even in the epaulettes and red facings.1858, Thomas Carlyle, “Visit to Dresden”, in History of Friedrich II. of Prussia, Called Frederick the Great, volume II, London: Chapman and Hall, […], →OCLC, book VI, page 38
  3. (broadly, obsolete, uncountable) Feathers which are fed to a hawk to cause it to regurgitate, for the purpose of cleaning its crop; a type of casting.
    • Euery night, after he hath fleen with his hawke the daye, either at the fielde, or brooke, he muſte giue his hawke caſting, ſomewhyles plumage, ſome other whiles pellets of Cotton, or ſuche like, and agayne, ſometimes ſome one medicine or other, according as by hir caſting, or mewte, he ſhall...1575, Francesco Sforzino Vicentino, “Certayne Speciall Poyntes, Necessarie for a Falconer, or Ostreger, Collected out of the Italian Author”, in George Turberuile [i.e.. George Turberville], The...
  4. (figuratively) A person's dress, especially when elaborate or fine.
    • While she was thinking what to say, Marie gradually wiped away her tears, and smoothed her plumage in a general sort of way, as a dove might be supposed to make toilet after a shower, […]1851 June – 1852 April, Harriet Beecher Stowe, “Tom’s Mistress and Her Opinions”, in Uncle Tom’s Cabin; or, Life among the Lowly, volume I, Boston, Mass.: John P[unchard] Jewett & Company; Cleveland...
  5. (figuratively) A person's external appearance, especially when showy.
    • I have thought / Of thee, thy learning, gorgeous eloquence, / And all the strength and plumage of thy youth, […]1799–1805 (date written), William Wordsworth, “Book VI. Cambridge and the Alps.”, in The Prelude, or Growth of a Poet’s Mind; an Autobiographical Poem, London: Edward Moxon, […], published 1850...
    • This expression of liberality and confidence from a man of Major Bridgenorth's reserved and cautious disposition, gave full plumage to Mistress Deborah's hopes; […]1822, [Walter Scott], chapter XII, in Peveril of the Peak. […], volume I, Edinburgh: […] Archibald Constable and Co.; London: Hurst, Robinson, and Co., →OCLC, page 289

plumage meaning in Tamil, Marathi, Malayalam and Kannada

plumage in Tamil

சிறகுகளின் தொகுதி, சிறகுத்தோற்றம், தோகை

plumage in Marathi

plumage
पिसारा pisārā

plumage in Malayalam

തൂവൺപ്പൂട, ബർഹഭാരം, തൊങ്ങൽ

plumage in Kannada

ತುಪ್ಪುಳ
More languagesFewer languages
plumage in Sanskrit
तनूज tanūjá
plumage in Arabic
رَخْت raḵt
plumage in Myanmar
အမွေး a.mwe:

Examples of plumage in a sentence

  • [W]ith a ſvveat ſhe caſts her feathers; and is then carefully nurſed up and fed, till ſhe recover her plumage again.1678, Francis Willughby, “Of the Eagle in General”, in John Ray, transl., The Ornithology of Francis Willughby […] Wherein All the Birds...
  • The parrot sat, preening her plumage, on Long John [Silver]'s shoulder.1881–1882, Robert Louis Stevenson, “In the Enemy’s Camp”, in Treasure Island, London; Paris: Cassell & Company, published 14 November 1883...
  • Praline (John Cleese): The plumage don't enter into it.1969 December 7 (first broadcast), John Cleese, Graham Chapman, “Full Frontal Nudity [the Dead Parrot sketch]”, in Monty Python’s Flying...

All 27 example sentences with plumage

Synonyms of plumage

Forms of plumage

pluralplumages

Plural of plumage: plumages

Origin of plumage

From Late Middle English plumage, plummage (“bird’s feathers collectively, plumage; (falconry) feathers fed to a hawk to cause it to regurgitate, casting”), from Middle French plumage, plomage (“bird’s feathers collectively; person’s (showy) clothing”), from Old French plumage (“bird’s feathers collectively”) (modern French plumage), from plume (“feather, plume”) + -age (suffix forming nouns denoting a state of being). Plume is derived from Latin plūma (“feather, plume”), ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *plewk- (“to flow; to fly; to run; etc.”), from Proto-Indo-European *plew- (“to flow; to fly; to run”). By surface analysis, plume + -age (suffix forming nouns with a sense of appurtenance or collection).

Words formed from plumage

Questions about plumage

What does plumage mean?
Plumage means the feathers covering the body of a bird collectively.
What is plumage in Tamil?
Plumage in Tamil is சிறகுகளின் தொகுதி, சிறகுத்தோற்றம், தோகை. See Plumage meaning in Tamil.
How do you use plumage in a sentence?
[W]ith a ſvveat ſhe caſts her feathers; and is then carefully nurſed up and fed, till ſhe recover her plumage again.
What part of speech is plumage?
Plumage is a noun.
How do you pronounce plumage?
Plumage is pronounced /ˈpluːmɪd͡ʒ/ (UK).
What is the plural of plumage?
The plural of plumage is plumages.

Words near plumage in the dictionary

  1. plum-throated cotingas
  2. plum-yew
  3. pluma
  4. plumaceous
  5. plumae
  6. plumage
  7. plumaged
  8. plumagery
  9. plumages
  10. plumarita
  11. plumaritas

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: plumage (page history and authors); plumage (Tamil Wiktionary) (page history and authors); पिसारा (Marathi) (page history and authors); plumage (Malayalam Wiktionary) (page history and authors); plumage (Kannada Wiktionary) (page history and authors); तनूज (Sanskrit) (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.

Last updated:

Pronunciation audio from Wikimedia Commons, each file under its own free license: LL-Q1860 (eng)-Vealhurl-plumage.wav, LL-Q1860 (eng)-Naomi Persephone Amethyst (NaomiAmethyst)-plumage.wav.

Cite this entry: “plumage.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/plumage. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.