Dictionary entry

Martlet

Webster's Dictionary 1913

Mart″let (?), n. [F. martinet. See Martin the bird, and cf. Martinet a disciplinarian.]

1. (Zoöl.) The European house martin.

2. [Cf. F. merlette.] (Her.) A bird without beak or feet; — generally assumed to represent a martin. As a mark of cadency it denotes the fourth son.