Definition of "gnatcatcher" [gnatcatcher]

• Any of several tiny North American birds of the genus Polioptila, having bluish-gray and white plumage, a long tail, and a small slender bill. (noun)

American Heritage(R) Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright (c) 2011 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

• "Pacific-slope Flycatcher, and perhaps a Western warbler or two to my life list, the gnatcatcher was my primary target."
• "Sure, some birds have names that describe their activities, such as flycatcher, or gnatcatcher, or their general appearance, such as bluebird, or the place they tend to loiter, such as cowbird."
• "Birds of concern include the brown pelican, lesser tern, osprey, black rail, clapper rail, California gnatcatcher and savannah sparrow."