Bird Names in English: 10 Birds With Pictures and Sound
Bird names in English start with the word bird and go on with duck, pigeon, goose, chicken and turkey, and also eagle, owl, parrot and penguin. Here are the names of 10 birds, each with a picture, the sound of the word, an easy meaning and an example sentence. The words go from easy to medium, and each one has a free picture game.
Birds near home & farm6 birds
Wild and special birds4 birds
Sounds & babiesquack, chick…
Quizname the bird
▶ Play the birds game
Jewel Quest English, a free picture game: Birds, level 1
Tap 🔊 Listen to hear the word, and the small speaker to hear the example. Each word has a link to the game level that teaches it.
6 birds near home and on the farm
You can see these birds in a park, on a lake, on a farm or in a yard. Some of them give us eggs or meat.
1. Bird
An animal with feathers, two wings and a beak. Most birds can fly, and all birds lay eggs.
A little bird is singing in the tree.
Bird is the word for all of them. A duck, an eagle and a penguin are all birds.
2. Duck
A water bird with a flat beak and webbed feet. It swims on lakes and ponds, and it says quack.
A duck is swimming on the lake.
3. Pigeon
A gray bird that lives in cities. Pigeons walk in parks and squares, and they eat bread and seeds.
A pigeon is eating bread in the park.
4. Goose
A big water bird with a long neck. It is bigger than a duck. One is a goose, and two are geese.
A goose walked across the road.
The plural is not gooses. We say one goose, two geese. This is an irregular plural.
5. Chicken
A farm bird that lays eggs. People also eat its meat, and the meat is called chicken too.
The chicken lays eggs every day.
A male chicken is a rooster, a female is a hen, and a baby is a chick.
6. Turkey
A big bird with a wide tail. Some live on farms and some live in the woods. Americans eat turkey on Thanksgiving Day.
A wild turkey walked into our yard.
Turkey with a capital T is also a country. The bird has a small t: a turkey.
▶ Play the goose level
Jewel Quest English: Birds, level 7: geese and ducks
4 wild and special birds
These birds are special. One flies very high, one sleeps in the day, one can copy your words, and one cannot fly at all.
7. Eagle
A very big bird with strong claws and a hooked beak. It flies high and sees small animals from far away.
An eagle flew over the mountain.
The bald eagle is the national bird of the United States. We say an eagle, not a eagle.
8. Owl
A bird with big round eyes. It sleeps in the day and looks for food at night. It says hoot.
The owl wakes up at night.
A person who goes to bed very late is a night owl. We say an owl.
9. Parrot
A colorful bird that can copy the words of people. Many people keep a parrot as a pet.
My parrot can say hello.
10. Penguin
A black and white bird that cannot fly, but it swims very well. Most penguins live in cold places, like Antarctica.
A penguin cannot fly, but it swims very well.
Penguins live in the south of the world, not at the North Pole.
▶ Play the parrot level
Jewel Quest English: Birds, level 5: parrots and pigeons
Bird sounds and baby birds
Every bird has its own sound, and in English each sound has its own verb. Use it like this: A duck quacks. An owl hoots. Here are the sounds of the birds on this page.
- A duck quacks.
- A chicken clucks.
- An owl hoots.
- A pigeon coos.
- A goose honks.
- A turkey gobbles.
- A small bird sings or tweets.
- A parrot can talk: it copies the words it hears.
A baby bird has a special name too, and the name is not always “baby bird”:
- A baby chicken is a chick.
- A baby duck is a duckling.
- A baby goose is a gosling.
Remember the plural of goose: one goose, two geese. All the other birds on this page just add -s: one duck, two ducks, one owl, two owls.
How the birds game works
Jewel Quest English is a free match-3 game. Match 3 pictures in a row, and you see the picture and hear the English word. After each level, a short quiz checks the new words. The Birds topic has 10 levels, and most levels teach one or two new birds. It works on a phone or a computer, with no sign-up.
| Level | Birds you collect |
|---|---|
| Level 1 | duck, bird |
| Level 2 | eagle, duck |
| Level 3 | owl, eagle |
| Level 4 | pigeon, owl |
| Level 5 | parrot, pigeon |
| Level 6 | eagle, owl, parrot |
| Level 7 | goose, duck |
| Level 8 | penguin, turkey, chicken |
| Level 9 | goose, pigeon, duck |
| Level 10 | eagle, owl, parrot, pigeon, goose |
On the Birds board you also see easy words you know, like dog, cat and apple.
Click Here for Step-by-Step Rules, Stories and Exercises to Practice All English Tenses
Quick quiz: name the bird
Write the name of each bird on the line. Use the word bank. Open the answers to check.
Name the bird
Write the name of each bird on the line. Use the word bank.
Word bank: chicken, duck, eagle, goose, owl, parrot, penguin, pigeon
www.really-learn-english.com/bird-names.html
Show the answers
1. duck 2. eagle 3. owl 4. pigeon 5. parrot 6. goose 7. penguin 8. chicken
For teachers: a printable list and class ideas
Print the list below on one page. Each bird has a picture, the name and a short meaning, plus a line where students write the word in their own language. You can also print the quiz above as a worksheet.
Bird names in English
Write each word in your language on the line.
Birds near home and on the farm
- bird: it has feathers and wings
- duck: it swims and says quack
- pigeon: a gray city bird
- goose: a big bird with a long neck
- chicken: a farm bird that lays eggs
- turkey: a big bird with a wide tail
Wild and special birds
- eagle: a big bird that flies high
- owl: it wakes up at night
- parrot: a colorful bird that can talk
- penguin: a bird that swims but cannot fly
www.really-learn-english.com/bird-names.html
Two ideas for your class
- Sound and bird (10 minutes). Say a sound: Quack! or Hoot, hoot! Students answer with the bird: A duck! An owl! Then students take turns and make the sounds. Remind them: a duck, but an owl.
- Who am I? (10 minutes). Read a clue from the printed list: I am black and white. I swim, but I cannot fly. The class guesses: You are a penguin! Then students write their own clues in pairs.
The game also works on a projector: put level 1 on the screen, and the class says each word before the game does. Share the level link in Google Classroom or any LMS. Nobody needs to sign up.
More picture word lists: animal names, tools names, furniture words with pictures and all our English vocabulary word lists.
Questions about bird names
What are the names of common birds in English?
Common birds in English are the duck, pigeon, goose, chicken, turkey, eagle, owl, parrot and penguin. Other common birds are the robin, sparrow, crow, swan and seagull. The word for all of them is bird.
What is the plural of goose?
The plural of goose is geese. One goose, two geese. It is an irregular plural, so we do not add -s.
What is the difference between a duck and a goose?
A goose is bigger than a duck and has a longer neck. A duck has a flat beak and says quack. A goose says honk. Both are water birds with webbed feet.
What sound does each bird make?
A duck quacks, a chicken clucks, an owl hoots, a pigeon coos, a goose honks and a turkey gobbles. A small bird sings or tweets. A parrot can also copy human words.
What is a baby bird called?
A baby bird is often called a chick. A baby chicken is a chick, a baby duck is a duckling and a baby goose is a gosling.
Can all birds fly?
No. A penguin cannot fly, but it swims very well. An ostrich cannot fly either, but it runs fast. Most other birds can fly.
Is it “a owl” or “an owl”?
Say an owl. We use an before a vowel sound, so it is an owl and an eagle. We use a before the other sounds: a duck, a parrot, a penguin.
How can I practice bird names in English?
Play the Birds topic in Jewel Quest English. You match pictures, hear each word and answer a short quiz after each level. The topic has 10 levels. It works on a phone or a computer, with no sign-up.
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