auk Meaning, Definition & Usage

  1. noun black-and-white short-necked web-footed diving bird of northern seas

WordNet

Auk noun
Etymology
Prov. E. alk; akin to Dan. alke, Icel. & Sw. alka.
Definitions
  1. (Zoöl.) A name given to various species of arctic sea birds of the family Alcidæ. The great auk, now extinct, is Alca (∨ Plautus) impennis. The razor-billed auk is A. torda. See Puffin, Guillemot, and Murre.

Webster 1913