turkey

noun

tur·​key ˈtər-kē 

plural turkeys

1

plural also turkey : a large North American gallinaceous bird (Meleagris gallopavo) that is domesticated in most parts of the world

also : its flesh used as food

2

: failure, flop

especially : a theatrical production that has failed

3

: three successive strikes in bowling

4

: a stupid, foolish, or inept person

Illustration of turkey

• turkey 1

Synonyms

• berk [British]
• booby
• charlie [British]
• charley
• cuckoo
• ding-a-ling
• ding-dong
• dingbat
• dipstick
• doofus [slang]
• featherhead
• fool
• git [British]
• goose
• half-wit
• jackass
• lunatic
• mooncalf
• nincompoop
• ninny
• ninnyhammer
• nit [chiefly British]
• nitwit
• nut
• nutcase
• simp
• simpleton
• yo-yo

Examples of turkey in a Sentence

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 Web

As a cheeky bid for 12-point votes (the highest any nation can give to another), it was performed by the puppet and accompanied by high-energy dancers meant to look like Irish turkeys. —Nick Allen, Vulture, 13 May 2025

The marinated turkey or chicken is stuffed into a French roll intended to soak up the recipe’s recaudo or marinade, along with slices of tomato, cucumber, radishes and sprigs of watercress. —Daniel Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2025

Based on the data collected from 29 state agencies, the study showed a roughly 28 percent decline in the number of fall turkey hunters, and a similar 31 percent decline in the number of turkeys harvested in the fall. —Dac Collins, Outdoor Life, 8 May 2025

Those who went hunting and brought back a large turkey wanted to show it off to everyone, including the golden retriever named Willie. —Liz O'Connell, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 May 2025

Word History

Etymology

Turkey, country in western Asia and southeastern Europe; from confusion with the guinea fowl, supposed to be imported from Turkish territory

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing turkey

• cold turkey
• talk turkey
• turkey-cock
• turkey oak
• turkey shoot
• turkey trot
• turkey vulture
• water turkey

Rhymes for turkey

• jerky
• murky
• perky
• quirky
• turki

Kids Definition

turkey

noun

tur·​key ˈtər-kē 

plural turkeys

1

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.

Geographical Definition

Turkey

geographical name

Tur·​key ˈtər-kē 

variants or now officially Türkiye

ˌtᵫr-kē-ˈye 

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.

see also turk sense 1