starling
/ˈstɑɹlɪŋ/
noun
Familiar
1.n.gregarious birds native to the Old World
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starling and starting differ by a single letter, buried far enough into the word to be easy to miss. starling means “gregarious birds native to the Old World”. starting means “(especially of eyes) bulging or protruding as with fear”. starting is the more common of the two in everyday English.
/ˈstɑɹlɪŋ/
1.n.gregarious birds native to the Old World
/ˈstɑɹtɪŋ/
1.adj.(especially of eyes) bulging or protruding as with fear
“with eyes starting from their sockets”
2.adj.appropriate to the beginning or start of an event
“the starting point”
3.n.a turn to be a starter (in a game at the beginning)
“he got his start because one of the regular pitchers was in the hospital”
| starling | starting | |
|---|---|---|
| Pronunciation | /ˈstɑɹlɪŋ/ | /ˈstɑɹtɪŋ/ |
| Said | STAHR-ling | STAHR-ting |
| Syllables | 2 | 2 |
| Letters | 8 | 8 |
| Parts of speech | noun | adjective, noun |
| Senses | 1 | 3 |
| How common | Familiar | Core |
| Synonyms | none recorded | none recorded |
Full entry for starling · Full entry for starting · More comparisons