cuckoo English · revision 1477

+ {{infobox|confidence=established|formation=borrowing, onomatopoeia|attested=c. 1240}}

+

+ ==Pronunciation==

+ * IPA: /ˈkʊkuː/ ''(UK)''; /ˈkuku/ ''(US)''^(Wiktionary)

+

+ ==Etymology==

+ It is [[inh|enm|cuccu]], [[m|enm|cokkou]],^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate) borrowed from or influenced by [[fro|cucu]], [[m|fro|cocu|t=cuckoo; cuckold]] (modern [[fr|coucou]]),^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(Hoad 1986)^(Klein 1966) imitating the call of the male bird.^(AHD)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline)^(MW Collegiate) Compare [[grc|κόκκυξ|tr=kókkux]], [[la|cucūlus]], [[sa|कोकिल|tr=kokila]], [[mga|cúach]] and [[cy|cog]], all imitative.^(Etymonline)^(Klein 1966)^(MWU 2024)^(Skeat 1911) The Old English name of the bird was [[ang|ġēac]], cognate with [[non|gaukr]] and [[de|Gauch|t=fool]].^(Etymonline)^(Weekley 1921)

+

+ ==Earliest recorded meaning==

+ The bird ''Cuculus canorus'', named after the male's mating call (c. 1240 in the OED; before 1300 in Barnhart; c. 1300 in Etymonline), and its call (c. 1240).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) It appears as a surname, ''Kuku'', in 1191.^(Barnhart 1995)

+

+ ==Semantic evolution==

+ By 1581 the word was applied to a person, especially a foolish one, with reference to the bird's monotonous call or its habit of laying eggs in other birds' nests.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) An unwelcome intruder is a ''cuckoo in the nest'' (early 17th century).^(Cresswell 2021) The verb, to repeat incessantly like the cuckoo's call, dates from 1648,^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate) and the adjective, “of or like a cuckoo”, from 1627.^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate) The slang adjective “crazy” is American, from 1918.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)^(Etymonline) The word [[cuckold]] also comes from the bird.^(Cresswell 2021)^(Partridge 1966)

+

+ ==Timeline==

+ * 1191 – the surname ''Kuku''.^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * c. 1240 – the bird and its call.^(OED 1989)

+ * 1581 – a foolish person.^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)

+ * 1627 – adjective, of or like a cuckoo.^(Barnhart 1995)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1648 – verb, to repeat incessantly.^(OED 1989)^(MW Collegiate)

+ * 1918 – adjective, crazy (American slang).^(OED 1989)^(Barnhart 1995)

+

+ ==Modern meaning==

+ ===Noun===

+ # A greyish European bird, ''Cuculus canorus'', with a two-note call, which lays its eggs in the nests of other birds.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Collins 2023)

+ # Any bird of the family Cuculidae, such as the [[roadrunner]].^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Collins 2023)

+ # The call of the cuckoo, or an imitation of it.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)

+ # ''(informal)'' A foolish or crazy person.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Verb===

+ # To repeat over and over, as the cuckoo does its call.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Collins 2023)

+ # To make the call of the cuckoo.^(RHWU)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ===Adjective===

+ # ''(informal)'' Lacking in sense; foolish or crazy.^(AHD)^(MW Collegiate)^(RHWU)^(Collins 2023)

+

+ ==Word family==

+ * [[cloud-cuckoo-land]]

+ * [[cuckooflower]]

+ * [[cuckoo clock]]

+ * [[yellow-billed cuckoo]]

+ * [[cuckoo spit]]

+ * [[black-billed cuckoo]]

+ * [[cuckoo wasp]]

+

+ ==Related words==

+ * [[cuckold]]

+ * [[coccyx]]

+ * [[gowk]]

+

+ ==References==

+ {{reflist}}