WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
lint•white
(lint′hwīt′, -wīt′),USA pronunciation n. [Chiefly Scot.]
- Scottish Termsthe linnet, Carduelis cannabina.
- Medieval Latin līnētum flax-field) + -wige, feminine of wiga fighter
- bef. 900; lint (syncopated variant of linnet) + white; replacing Middle English lynkwhytte, alteration (perh. by association with link hill (see links) and whit) of Old English līnetwige linnet, literally, flax (or flax-field) trouble-maker, so called because the bird pecks out and eats flaxseed, equivalent. to līnet- (
'lintwhite' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):