robin

plural robins

1. Any of various passerine birds (about 100 species) of the families Muscicapidae, Turdidae and Petroicidae (formerly Eopsaltriidae), typically with a red breast.
   1. A European robin, Erithacus rubecula.

      As they turned into Hertford Street they startled a robin from the poet's head on a barren fountain, and he fled away with a cameo note.

      1922, Michael Arlen, “Ep./4/2”, in “Piracy”: A Romantic Chronicle of These Days

      Synonyms: ruddock

   2. An American robin, Turdus migratorius.
2. historicalA trimming in front of a dress.

1. uncountablechemistryA toxalbumin obtained from the locust tree.

plural Robins · alternative Robyn

1. A unisex given name.
   1. A male given name from the Romance languages or the Germanic languages.

      They ſay hee is already in the Forreſt of Arden, and a many merry men with him; and there liue like the old Robin Hood of England

      c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene i], page 186, column 1

      2 more examples

      This waly boy will be nae coof: /I think we'll call him Robin./ Robin was a rovin' boy, / Rantin', rovin', rantin', rovin', /Robin was a rovin' boy, / Rantin', rovin' Robin.

      1785, Robert Burns, Rantin', Rovin' Robin

      Some names simply aren't appropriate after a while. Say you were called Robin, for instance. Well that's a perfectly good monicker up to the age of about nine, but pretty soon you'd have to do something about it, wouldn't you? Change your name by deed-poll to Samson, or Goliath, or something.

      1991, Julian Barnes, Talking It Over, Jonathan Cape, →ISBN, page 12

   2. A female given name from the Germanic languages, also associated with the bird robin.

      "We'll name her Robin," her mother said, and it was as though at her words something of that spring and the bird's song and his gay and friendly and impudent spirit entered into the child.

      1949, Adela Rogers St. John, Never Again, and Other Stories, Doubleday, page 25

      1 more example

      In March 1953, a month after Jeb was born, the Bush family received the devastating news that Robin had leukemia. A local doctor told the Bushes that doctors had never seen a white blood cell count that high and there was nothing they could do for her.

      2019 March 8, Allen Kim, “What you don’t know about the Bush family dynasty”, in CNN, archived from the original on 14 Sep 2022

2. rare compared to given nameA surname originating as a patronymic.

plural Robins · alternative Robyn

1. ball gamesSomeone connected with any number of sports teams known as the Robins, as a fan, player, coach, etc.