peregrine

adjective·/ˈpɛr.ə.ɡrɪn/

1. Wandering; foreign or coming from abroad. Peregrine suggests travel and displacement, otherness earned by distance.

He spoke with a peregrine ease, as if his life had been made in stations and border towns.

2. Of a falcon species (Falco peregrinus) famed for swift flight and long-ranging habit (zoological).

A peregrine stooped from the cliff, the dive so fast it seemed like a tear in the air.

noun

A peregrine falcon.

The peregrine returned each spring, claiming the same ledge as if the mountain were a calendar.

Etymology

From Latin peregrinus “foreign; traveling,” from per “through” + ager “field, land.” The root image is movement across land—an etymology that suits both the traveler and the far-flying bird.

Related Words

itinerantwandering from place to place
peregrinationa journey; the noun of roaming
falconthe broader family
migratoryseasonal movement; kin in sense