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To provide food; to buy, procure, or prepare provisions. [He] providently caters for the sparrow. Shak.

The soft naked sheath at the base of the beak of birds of prey, parrots, and some other birds. See Beak.

California rosaceous shrub (Adenostoma fasciculatum) which often forms an impenetrable chaparral.

The hedge sparrow.

at the back, worn, esp. by cowboys, to protect the legs from thorny bushes, as in the chaparral; -- called also chapareras or colloq. chaps. [Sp. Amer.]

A small American sparrow (Spizella socialis), very common near dwelling; -- also called chipping bird and chipping sparrow, from its simple note.

The act of chirping; a chirp. The sparrows' chirrup on the roof. Tennyson.

for the pivot of a balance in a clock or watch. Knight. Ball cock. See under Ball. -- Chaparral cock. See under Chaparral. -- Cock and bull story, an extravagant, boastful story; a canard. -- Cock of the plains (Zoöl.) See Sage cock. -- Cock of the rock (Zoöl.), a South American bird (Rupicola aurantia) having a be…

An Australian parrot (Calopsitta Novæ-Hollandiæ); -- so called from its note.

A bird of the Parrot family, of the subfamily Cacatuinæ, having a short, strong, and much curved beak, and the head ornamented with a crest, which can be raised or depressed at will. There are several genera and many species; as the broad-crested (Plictolophus, or Cacatua, cristatus), the sulphur-crested (P. galeritus)…

An American parrakeet of the genus Conurus. Many species are known. See Parrakeet.

The hedge sparrow or hedge accentor. [Local, Eng.]

a natural subfamily including buntings and some New World sparrows. Syn. -- subfamily Emberizidae, subfamily Emberizinae. [WordNet 1.5]

An unfledged or young male sparrow hawk. [Obs.] Shak.

Hence, to fight or dispute in the manner of fencers, that is, by thrusting, guarding, parrying, etc. They fence and push, and, pushing, loudly roar; Their dewlaps and their sides are batDryden. As when a billow, blown against, Falls back, the voice with which I fenced A little ceased, but recommenced. Tennyson.…

To act on the defensive, or in opposition; to resist; to parry; to shift off. The dexterous management of terms, and being able to fend . . . with them, passes for a great part of learning. Locke.

A young salmon. See Parr.

asher shark. See Thrasher shark, under Thrasher. -- Fox sleep, pretended sleep. -- Fox sparrow (Zoöl.), a large American sparrow (Passerella iliaca); -- so called on account of its reddish color. -- Fox squirrel (Zoöl.), a large North American squirrel (Sciurus niger, or S. cinereus). In the Southern States the blac…

A genus of birds, with a short, conical, pointed bill. It formerly included all the sparrows and finches, but is now restricted to certain European finches, like the chaffinch and brambling.

Pertaining to the family Fringillidæ; characteristic of finches; sparrowlike.