a medium-sized (22–27 cm) nightjar from North America. [It] is commonly heard within its range, but less often seen because of its camouflage. It is named onomatopoeically after its song.
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I heard a whippoorwill callin’, and I thought to myself, Go on away from here, we’ll whip ole Will when we find him.
Ralph Ellison. The Invisible Man (1952)
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The stars were shining, and the leaves rustled in the woods ever so mournful; and I heard an owl, away off, who-whooing about somebody that was dead, and a whippowill and a dog crying about somebody that was going to die;
Mark Twain. The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn
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From across the road a bird sang “Whippoorwill, whippoorwill!”
E. B. White. Charlotte's Web (1952)
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A whip-poor-will sang out. [she] had told him once that whip-poor-wills were the departed spirits of loved ones.