[ 'albətrɒs ]
■ noun ( plural ~es )
1》 a very large seabird with long, narrow wings, found chiefly in the southern oceans. [Genera Diomedea and Phoebetria .]
2》 a burden or encumbrance (in allusion to Coleridge's The Rime of the Ancient Mariner ).
3》 Golf a double eagle.
Origin
C17: alt. (influenced by L. albus 'white') of C16 alcatras , applied to various seabirds, from Sp. and Port. alcatraz , from Arab. al-ġaṭṭās 'the diver'.