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Definition of tufted titmouse
tufted titmouse
Plural:tufted titmice
• noun
1
North American A small, highly active North American songbird (Baeolophus bicolor) in the tit and chickadee family, distinguished by its grey upperparts, white underparts, rust-colored flanks, and a prominent grey crest of feathers on its head.
Example
"We sat quietly by the window watching a tufted titmouse grab a black oil sunflower seed from the feeder before darting back to the safety of the oak tree."
Word Nuance & Usage
Take care with the plural form 'tufted titmice'; although the bird has no biological connection to rodents, folk etymology historically altered the word 'mase' to 'mouse', resulting in the irregular plural.
Usage Trend
Historical frequency of usage in published text.
180019102020
Data source: Google Books Ngram Viewer
Cite this Entry
Wordmom. (2026). Definition of Tufted titmouse. In Wordmom Dictionary. Retrieved Nov 5, 2026, from https://wordmom.com/dictionary/tufted-titmouse