black swan
English
An Australian black swan
Etymology
A calque, equivalent to black + swan. Roman satirist Juvenal wrote in AD 82 of rara avis in terris nigroque simillima cygno ("a rare bird in the lands, and very like a black swan"), creating a durable metaphor and expression.
Noun
black swan (plural black swans)
- Cygnus atratus, an Australian swan whose feathers are black. [c. 1700]
- Something believed impossible or not to exist, of which an example is subsequently found.
Quotations
- For quotations of use of this term, see Citations:black swan.
Synonyms
- (Cygnus atratus): Chenopis atratus
Derived terms
Translations
Cygnus atratus
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something believed non-existent
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References
- “black swan” (US) / “black swan” (UK) in Oxford Dictionaries, Oxford University Press.
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