crow
pronunciation
How to pronounce crow in British English:
UK [krəʊ]
How to pronounce crow in American English:
US [kroʊ]
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- Noun:
- black birds having a raucous call
- the cry of a cock (or an imitation of it)
- an instance of boastful talk
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- Verb:
- dwell on with satisfaction
- express pleasure verbally
- utter shrill sounds
Word Origin
- crow
- crow: [OE] The verb crow began in prehistoric West Germanic as an imitation of the harsh call of the cockerel. Its relatives still survive in other Germanic languages, including German krähen and Dutch kraaien. Early examples of birds other than cockerels being described as ‘crowing’ are comparatively rare, but nevertheless there seems no doubt that the verb formed the basis of the name given to birds of the genus Corvus [OE]. The crowbar [19] was so named from the resemblance of its splayed end to a crow’s foot.
- crow (n.)
- Old English crawe, imitative of bird's cry. Phrase eat crow is perhaps based on the notion that the bird is edible when boiled but hardly agreeable; first attested 1851, American English, but said to date to War of 1812 (Walter Etecroue turns up 1361 in the Calendar of Letter Books of the City of London). The image of a crow's foot for the wrinkles appearing with age at the corner of the eye is from late 14c. ("So longe mote ye lyve Til crowes feet be growen under youre ye." [Chaucer, Troilus and Criseyde, c. 1385]). Phrase as the crow flies recorded from 1800.
- Crow
- Indian tribe of the American Midwest, the name is a rough translation of their own name, Apsaruke.
- crow (v.)
- Old English crawian "make a loud noise like a crow" (see crow (n.)); sense of "exult in triumph" is 1520s, perhaps in part because the English crow is a carrion-eater. Related: Crowed; crowing.
Example
- 1. North american crow indians encouraged them to commit suicide .
- 2. His crow would awaken the whole village .
- 3. That morning , we 'd woken to a single dead crow .
- 4. Crow 's a bit much , don 't you think ?
- 5. 14 / 19 A crow rests on a pole at a park in tokyo , japan .