owling
Pluralowlings
- 1A baby owl, or a young owl that is still growing.
Like a chick is a baby chicken, an owling is a baby owl.
The owling sat in the nest, waiting for its mother to return.
Two tiny owlings huddled together on the low branch.
Similarowlet
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- 2The activity of going out to catch owls.
Like fishing, but you are trying to catch owls instead of fish.
Owling takes a lot of patience and a very quiet night.
They went owling near the lake after sunset last night.
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- 3A photo craze where a person squats like an owl in a strange place to be photographed.
Like a photo game where you copy how an owl sits, then snap a picture.
She tried owling on top of a fence just to get a funny picture.
We spent the afternoon owling on rocks and statues for laughs.
- 4The crime of smuggling sheep or wool out of England long ago.
Like sneaking goods across a border in secret, but with sheep and wool.
Owling made some traders rich by selling English wool abroad.
The king's officers tried hard to stop owling along the coast.
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Practice
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Origins
From the word owl plus -ing. It means smuggling sheep, which was done at night when owls call.
From owl plus -ling.