Tiding
noun /ˈtaɪdɪŋ/ — A group of magpies — from the old belief that magpies bring news.
Definition
The collective noun for a group of magpies — named after the folk belief that magpies brought news (tidings), particularly prophetic tidings about fortune and fate.
Beyond the definition
One for sorrow, two for joy — the magpie counting rhyme is ancient and persistent. A tiding of magpies carries with it all of that folklore: the sense that these birds arrive with information, that their number matters, that you should pay attention.
Origin & history
English collective noun tradition. 'Tidings' — news, information — from Old Norse 'tíðindi' (events, news). The magpie was historically a messenger bird; its arrival was read as an omen.
Example sentences
Illustrative sentences for learning, not verified community posts or sourced quotations.
A tiding of magpies arrived in the garden and she counted them carefully.
She said she saw a tiding that morning — not one, not three, but five.
The collective noun 'tiding' honours everything folklore has said about magpies.
Synonyms
parliament (of magpies), murder (of crows)
Related words
Word in the Wild
See how this word appears in life, language and stories.
Illustrative sentences and imagined stories for learning — not verified sightings, interviews, or sourced quotations.
Word in focus
A tiding of magpies
Two magpies standing together on snowy ground.
Here, “tiding” names the whole gathering. Notice the animals together rather than looking for one individual with that name. The photograph illustrates the group; it is not evidence that this particular scene inspired the expression.
Image credit: mark byzewski · CC BY 2.0 (license)
Resized and converted to WebP; displayed with a fitted crop.