woodpecker

noun

1. Any bird of species-rich family Picidae, with a strong pointed beak suitable for pecking holes in wood.

   “On its summit towered aloft the fir tree which has often been referred to, like a mighty mast, full of woodpeckers' holes.”

   “His skin was scarlet like the head of the green woodpecker.”

   “An adult female of this rare woodpecker was taken at 6,000 feet in April 1925 near Chingchuan in the forests of northern Szechuan.”

   “Birdwatchers would enjoy a host of sparrows, a herd of swans, a descent of woodpeckers, a herd of wrens, and mutation of thrushes.”

2. (slang)A Type 92 heavy machine gun.