Vulture

How to spell vulture

7 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce vulture

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does vulture mean?

1. nounA large bird of prey that feeds mainly on the carcasses of dead animals.
2. nounA person who ruthlessly seeks to profit from the misfortune or weakness of others.

Vulture in a sentence

• A vulture circled high above the dry plain searching for a carcass.

• After the company collapsed, every creditor became a vulture chasing the assets.

• The wildlife documentary showed a vulture stripping meat from the bones.

• She warned that some buyers act like a vulture at a distressed property sale.

Where does vulture come from?

Language of origin: Latin

The word comes from the Latin vultur, the everyday Roman name for the large scavenging birds that gathered around carcasses. Some Roman writers linked the name loosely to the verb vellere, meaning 'to pluck or tear', a fitting image for a bird that strips flesh from the dead, though that connection is debated and may be a later rationalisation. English took the word during the 1300s by way of Old French, where it appeared as forms such as voutour and vultur, and the spelling settled on the Latin-flavoured vultur- with an added -e. By the 1600s it had also gained its familiar figurative sense, describing a person who circles greedily to profit from another's misfortune. The 'ul' in the middle, pronounced with a clear 'uhl', and the soft 'tch' sound spelled 'tu' are the parts writers most often second-guess.

How the word is built

• vultur- (from Latin vultur, the name of the scavenging bird of prey)
• -e (anglicised ending)