7 PHRASE If you say that doing something will kill two birds with one stone , you mean that it will enable you to achieve two things that you want to achieve, rather than just one.
bird|cage /bɜː r dke I dʒ/ (birdcages ) also bird cage N‑COUNT A birdcage is a cage in which birds are kept.
bi rd flu N‑UNCOUNT Bird flu is a virus which can be transmitted from chickens, ducks, and other birds to people.
birdie /bɜː r di/ (birdies , birdying , birdied )
1 N‑COUNT In golf, if you get a birdie , you get the golf ball into a hole in one stroke fewer than the number of strokes which has been set as the standard for a good player.
2 VERB If a golfer birdies a hole, he or she gets a birdie at that hole. □ [V n] He birdied five of the first seven holes.
bird|life /bɜː r dla I f/ also bird life N‑UNCOUNT The birdlife in a place is all the birds that live there.
bird|like /bɜː r dla I k/ also bird-like ADJ If someone has a birdlike manner, they move or look like a bird. □ …the birdlike way she darted about.
bi rd of pa ra|dise (birds of paradise ) N‑COUNT A bird of paradise is a songbird which is found mainly in New Guinea. The male birds have very brightly coloured feathers.
bi rd of pa s|sage (birds of passage ) N‑COUNT If you refer to someone as a bird of passage , you mean that they are staying in a place for a short time before going to another place. □ Most of these emigrants were birds of passage who returned to Spain after a relatively short stay.
bi rd of pre y (birds of prey ) N‑COUNT A bird of prey is a bird such as an eagle or a hawk that kills and eats other birds and animals.
bi rd's eye vie w (bird's eye views ) N‑COUNT [usu sing] You say that you have a bird's eye view of a place when you are looking down at it from a great height, so that you can see a long way but everything looks very small.
bird|song /bɜː r dsɒŋ, [AM ] -sɔːŋ/ (birdsongs ) also bird song N‑UNCOUNT Birdsong is the sound of a bird or birds calling in a way which sounds musical. □ The air is filled with birdsong.
bi rd ta|ble (bird tables ) N‑COUNT A bird table is a small wooden platform on a pole which some people put in their garden in order to put food for the birds on it.
bi rd-watcher (bird-watchers ) also birdwatcher N‑COUNT A bird-watcher is a person whose hobby is watching and studying wild birds in their natural surroundings.
bi rd-watching also birdwatching N‑UNCOUNT Bird-watching is the activity of watching and studying wild birds in their natural surroundings.
Biro /ba I roʊ/ (Biros ) N‑COUNT A Biro is a pen with a small metal ball at its tip which transfers the ink onto the paper. [BRIT , TRADEMARK ]
birth ◆◇◇ /bɜː r θ/ (births )
1 N‑VAR When a baby is born, you refer to this event as his or her birth . □ [+ of ] It was the birth of his grandchildren which gave him greatest pleasure. □ She weighed 5lb 7oz at birth. □ …premature births.
2 N‑UNCOUNT [with poss] You can refer to the beginning or origin of something as its birth . □ [+ of ] …the birth of popular democracy.
3 N‑UNCOUNT Some people talk about a person's birth when they are referring to the social position of the person's family. □ …men of low birth. □ His birth, background and career show that you can make it in this country on merit alone.
4 → see also date of birth , home birth
5 PHRASE If, for example, you are French by birth , you are French because your parents are French, or because you were born in France. □ Sadrudin was an Iranian by birth.
6 PHRASE When a woman gives birth , she produces a baby from her body. □ She's just given birth to a baby girl.
7 PHRASE To give birth to something such as an idea means to cause it to start to exist. □ A competition involving injured war veterans gave birth to the modern Paralympic movement.
8 PHRASE The country, town, or village of your birth is the place where you were born.
bi rth cer|tifi|cate (birth certificates ) N‑COUNT Your birth certificate is an official document which gives details of your birth, such as the date and place of your birth, and the names of your parents.
bi rth con|trol N‑UNCOUNT Birth control means planning whether to have children, and using contraception to prevent having them when they are not wanted.
birth|date /bɜː r θde I t/ (birthdates ) N‑COUNT Your birthdate is the same as your date of birth .
birth|day ◆◇◇ /bɜː r θde I , -di/ (birthdays ) N‑COUNT Your birthday is the anniversary of the date on which you were born.
bi rth|day suit (birthday suits ) N‑COUNT If you are in your birthday suit , you are not wearing any clothes. [INFORMAL , HUMOROUS or OLD-FASHIONED ]
birth|ing /bɜː r θ I ŋ/ ADJ [ADJ n] Birthing means relating to or used during the process of giving birth. □ The hospital has pioneered the use of birthing pools.
birth|mark /bɜː r θmɑː r k/ (birthmarks ) N‑COUNT A birthmark is a mark on someone's skin that has been there since they were born.
birth|place /bɜː r θple I s/ (birthplaces )
1 N‑COUNT Your birthplace is the place where you were born. [WRITTEN ]
2 N‑COUNT The birthplace of something is the place where it began. □ [+ of ] Ironbridge Gorge is known as the birthplace of the Industrial Revolution.