lapwing OE. hlēapewince, the first el. of which is formally identical with LEAP, and appears in Fris. names of the bird, the second el. contains the base (meaning ‘move sideways or from side to side’) of OE. wincian WINK; the present form is due to assoc. with LAP3 and WING.

lapwing (peewit) Any of several species of birds, especially the Eurasian lapwing, Vanellus vanellus, a wading bird with a conspicuous crest. It commonly nests in open agricultural land and defends its young by luring predators away, feigning a broken wing. Length: 30cm (12in). Family Charadriidae.

lapwing traditional allusions to this bird refer to its crested head, its technique of distracting an enemy from its nest by crying loudly at a distance from it, or by offering itself as quarry to be followed, and to the belief that the newly-hatched lapwing runs about with its head in the shell.