1. 1. Any of various birds of prey of the family Falconidae and especially of the genus Falco, having a short, curved beak and long, pointed, powerful wings adapted for swift flight.
   2. Any of several birds of these or related species, such as hawks, trained to hunt small game.
   3. A female bird of this type used in falconry.
2. A small cannon in use from the 15th to the 17th century.

[Middle English, from Old French faucon, falcun, from Late Latin falcō, falcōn-.]

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.