from
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48
Wryneck \Wry"neck\, n. (Med.)
[1913 Webster]
1. A twisted or distorted neck; a deformity in which the neck
is drawn to one side by a rigid contraction of one of the
muscles of the neck; torticollis.
[1913 Webster]
2. a person suffering from torticollis.
[PJC]
3. (Zool.) Any one of several species of Old World birds of
the genus {Jynx} or subfamily {Jynginae}, allied to the
woodpeckers; especially, the common European species
({Jynx torguilla}); -- so called from its habit of turning
the neck around in different directions. Called also
{cuckoo's mate}, {snakebird}, {summer bird}, {tonguebird},
and {writheneck}.
[1913 Webster +PJC]