CAPERCAILLIE


Meaning of CAPERCAILLIE in English

/kap'euhr kayl"yee/ , n.

a large grouse, Tetrao urogallus, of Eurasian forests.

Also, capercailzie /kap'euhr kayl"yee, -kayl"zee/ .

[ 1530-40; capull coille (by dissimilation), lit., horse of the woods; for first element, cf. ME capel horse, ON kapall nag, from the same source (prob. Celtic) as L caballus horse; sp. lz is early typographical rendering of manuscript sp. l + yogh letter (repr. palatal l ); cf. parallel sp. of surnames Mackenzie, Menzies ]

Random House Webster's Unabridged English dictionary.      Полный английский словарь Вебстер - Random House .