He was acting like a complete turkey.
only a turkey would think it's a good idea to go for a jog when the weather drops below zero
Recent Examples on the WebOftentimes, this is a turkey sound that toms use to communicate with other male turkeys.—Josh Honeycutt, Outdoor Life, 2 May 2024 Kelly has watched tactics change as dramatically as the turkey populations.—Will Brantley, Field & Stream, 2 May 2024 See all Example Sentences for turkey
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'turkey.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Turkey, country in western Asia and southeastern Europe; from confusion with the guinea fowl, supposed to be imported from Turkish territory
plural also turkey: a large North American bird that is related to the domestic chicken and is domesticated in most parts of the world
2
: something that is a failure
the new play was a turkey
3
: a stupid or foolish person
Etymology
from turkey-cock, an old word for "guinea fowl," from Turkey, a country in Asia Minor; so called because at one time people thought guinea fowl came from Turkey
Word Origin
The bird we now call the guinea fowl was once called the turkey. Turkey was the shortened version of turkey-cock and turkey-hen. The guinea fowl's original home was in Africa. However, Europeans discovered that it was good to eat and did well in captivity, so they brought it back to Europe. Some people mistakenly thought that the birds came from Turkey, and the name stuck. Later, when English settlers first arrived in America, they found a large bird living here that was also good to eat. They called this new bird turkey because it reminded them of the turkey they were familiar with back in Europe.
country in western Asia and southeastern Europe between the Mediterranean and Black seas; capital Ankara area 302,535 square miles (783,562 square kilometers), population 81,257,000 see ottoman empire
Note:
Turkey was formerly the center of an empire whose capital was Constantinople. Since 1923 it has been a republic.
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