Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)
Eagle \Ea"gle\, n. [OE. egle, F. aigle, fr. L. aquila; prob.
named from its color, fr. aquilus dark-colored, brown; cf.
Lith. aklas blind. Cf. {Aquiline}.]
1. (Zo["o]l.) Any large, rapacious bird of the Falcon family,
esp. of the genera {Aquila} and {Hali[ae]etus}. The eagle
is remarkable for strength, size, graceful figure,
keenness of vision, and extraordinary flight. The most
noted species are the golden eagle ({Aquila
chrysa["e]tus}); the imperial eagle of Europe ({A.
mogilnik or imperialis}); the American bald eagle
({Hali[ae]etus leucocephalus}); the European sea eagle
({H. albicilla}); and the great harpy eagle ({Thrasaetus
harpyia}). The figure of the eagle, as the king of birds,
is commonly used as an heraldic emblem, and also for
standards and emblematic devices. See {Bald eagle},
{Harpy}, and {Golden eagle}.
2. A gold coin of the United States, of the value of ten
dollars.
3. (Astron.) A northern constellation, containing Altair, a
star of the first magnitude. See {Aquila}.
4. The figure of an eagle borne as an emblem on the standard
of the ancient Romans, or so used upon the seal or
standard of any people.
Though the Roman eagle shadow thee. --Tennyson.
Note: Some modern nations, as the United States, and France
under the Bonapartes, have adopted the eagle as their
national emblem. Russia, Austria, and Prussia have for
an emblem a double-headed eagle.
{Bald eagle}. See {Bald eagle}.
{Bold eagle}. See under {Bold}.
{Double eagle}, a gold coin of the United States worth twenty
dollars.
{Eagle hawk} (Zo["o]l.), a large, crested, South American
hawk of the genus {Morphnus}.
{Eagle owl} (Zo["o]l.), any large owl of the genus {Bubo},
and allied genera; as the American great horned owl ({Bubo
Virginianus}), and the allied European species ({B.
maximus}). See {Horned owl}.
{Eagle ray} (Zo["o]l.), any large species of ray of the genus
{Myliobatis} (esp. {M. aquila}).
{Eagle vulture} (Zo["o]l.), a large West African bid
({Gypohierax Angolensis}), intermediate, in several
respects, between the eagles and vultures.
Hawk \Hawk\, n. [OE. hauk (prob. fr. Icel.), havek, AS. hafoc,
heafoc; akin to D. havik, OHG. habuh, G. habicht, Icel.
haukr, Sw. h["o]k, Dan. h["o]g, prob. from the root of E.
heave.] (Zo["o]l.)
One of numerous species and genera of rapacious birds of the
family {Falconid[ae]}. They differ from the true falcons in
lacking the prominent tooth and notch of the bill, and in
having shorter and less pointed wings. Many are of large size
and grade into the eagles. Some, as the goshawk, were
formerly trained like falcons. In a more general sense the
word is not infrequently applied, also, to true falcons, as
the sparrow hawk, pigeon hawk, duck hawk, and prairie hawk.
Note: Among the common American species are the red-tailed
hawk ({Buteo borealis}); the red-shouldered ({B.
lineatus}); the broad-winged ({B. Pennsylvanicus}); the
rough-legged ({Archibuteo lagopus}); the sharp-shinned
{Accipiter fuscus}). See {Fishhawk}, {Goshawk}, {Marsh
hawk}, under {Marsh}, {Night hawk}, under {Night}.
{Bee hawk} (Zo["o]l.), the honey buzzard.
{Eagle hawk}. See under {Eagle}.
{Hawk eagle} (Zo["o]l.), an Asiatic bird of the genus
{Spiz[ae]tus}, or {Limn[ae]tus}, intermediate between the
hawks and eagles. There are several species.
{Hawk fly} (Zo["o]l.), a voracious fly of the family
{Asilid[ae]}. See {Hornet fly}, under {Hornet}.
{Hawk moth}. (Zo["o]l.) See {Hawk moth}, in the Vocabulary.
{Hawk owl}. (Zo["o]l.)
(a) A northern owl ({Surnia ulula}) of Europe and America. It
flies by day, and in some respects resembles the hawks.
(b) An owl of India ({Ninox scutellatus}).
{Hawk's bill} (Horology), the pawl for the rack, in the
striking mechanism of a clock.