cuckoo

ˈkʊkuː

3 definitions

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#1·8h ago

Any of various birds, of the family within the order , famous for laying its eggs in the nests of other species; but especially a common cuckoo (), that has a characteristic two-note call.

Origin: From , kokkow, cukkuk, gokkouȝ, probably from , coquu, cucu (whence ); ultimately of the song of the male Common Cuckoo (), perhaps via . Compare dialectal . Displaced and native , ȝek (from ), see . The UK sense is by analogy from the bird's practice of brood parasitism. The Malaysian and Singaporean sense is a. Origin information sourced from Wiktionary contributors (CC BY-SA 4.0).

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#2·8h ago

The sound of that particular bird.

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#3·8h ago

The bird-shaped figure found in cuckoo clocks.

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