DICT.TW Dictionary Taiwan

 Owl n.
 1. Zool. Any species of raptorial birds of the family Strigidae.  They have large eyes and ears, and a conspicuous circle of feathers around each eye.  They are mostly nocturnal in their habits.
 Note: ☞ Some species have erectile tufts of feathers on the head.  The feathers are soft and somewhat downy.  The species are numerous.  See Barn owl, Burrowing owl, Eared owl, Hawk owl, Horned owl, Screech owl, Snowy owl, under Barn, Burrowing, etc.
 Note: ☞ In the Scriptures the owl is commonly associated with desolation; poets and story-tellers introduce it as a bird of ill omen.  . . . The Greeks and Romans made it the emblem of wisdom, and sacred to Minerva, -- and indeed its large head and solemn eyes give it an air of wisdom.
 2. Zool. A variety of the domestic pigeon.
 Owl monkey Zool., any one of several species of South American nocturnal monkeys of the genus Nyctipithecus.  They have very large eyes.  Called also durukuli.
 Owl moth Zool., a very large moth (Erebus strix). The expanse of its wings is over ten inches.
 Owl parrot Zool., the kakapo.
 Sea owl Zool., the lumpfish.
 Owl train, a cant name for certain railway trains whose run is in the nighttime.

 Barn n.  A covered building used chiefly for storing grain, hay, and other productions of a farm.  In the United States a part of the barn is often used for stables.
 Barn owl Zool., an owl of Europe and America (Aluco flammeus, or Strix flammea), which frequents barns and other buildings.
 Barn swallow Zool., the common American swallow (Hirundo horreorum), which attaches its nest of mud to the beams and rafters of barns.

 barn owl
      n : mottled buff and white owl often inhabiting barns and other
          structures; important in rodent control [syn: Tyto alba]