coot

English

A coot

Wikispecies

Etymology

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.) From Middle English cote (“coot”). Related to Dutch meerkoet.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kuːt/

• Audio (AU)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -uːt

Noun

coot (plural coots)

1. Any of various aquatic birds of the genus Fulica that are mainly black with a prominent frontal shield on the forehead.
2. (colloquial) A foolish or eccentric fellow

   A silly coot.

   An old coot

   A rich coot

   • 1960, P. G. Wodehouse, Jeeves in the Offing, chapter VII:

     “You'll be able now to give it as your considered opinion that [Wilbert Cream] is as loony as a coot, Sir Roderick.” A pause ensued during which [the psychiatrist] appeared to be weighing this, possibly thinking back to coots he had met in the course of his professional career and trying to estimate their dippiness as compared with that of W. Cream.

3. (slang, with the) A success; something excellent.

   Man that song's the coot.

   Would be the coot if we could go this weekend!

4. (slang) Body louse (Pediculus humanus).

Derived terms

bird species

• American coot, Fulica americana
• Andean coot, Fulica ardesiaca
• Caribbean coot, Fulica caribaea
• Eurasian coot, Fulica atra
• giant coot, Fulica gigantea
• Hawaiian coot, Fulica alai
• horned coot, Fulica cornuta
• mascarene coot, Fulica newtoni
• red-fronted coot, Fulica rufifrons
• red-gartered coot, Fulica armillata
• red-knobbed coot, Fulica cristata
• white-winged coot, Fulica leucoptera

 

(other derived terms)

• bald as a coot
• cracked as a coot
• crazy as a coot
• daffy as a coot
• daft as a coot
• deaf as a coot
• dizzy as a coot
• drunk as a coot
• gay as a coot
• happy as a coot
• loony as a coot
• mad as a coot
• old coot
• pissed as a coot
• queer as a coot
• rich coot
• silly as a coot
• simple as a coot

 

Related terms

• (bird): fulicine

Translations

bird

• Arabic: غُرَّة‎ f (ḡurra)
• Belarusian: лы́ска f (lýska), лысу́ха f (lysúxa)
• Bulgarian: ли́ска (bg) f (líska)
• Catalan: fotja f, folliga f
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 骨頂雞, 骨顶鸡 (gǔdǐngjī)

• Czech: lyska (cs) f
• Danish: blishøne (da)
• Dhivehi: ސަލްވާ ދޫނި‎ (salvā dūni)
• Dutch: koet (nl) m
• Esperanto: fuliko, akvokoko
• Estonian: lauk (et)
• Finnish: nokikana (fi)
• French: foulque (fr) f
• Galician: galiñola f, cotorza f
• Georgian: მელოტა (meloṭa)
• German: Blässhuhn (de) n, Blesshuhn (de) n, Blessralle f, Wasserhuhn n
• Greek: φαλαρίδα (el) f (falarída)

  Ancient: φαλαρίς f (phalarís)

• Hungarian: szárcsa (hu)
• Irish: cearc cheannann f, coileach ceannann m
• Italian: folaga f
• Japanese: 大鷭 (ja) (おおばん, ōban), オオバン (ja) (ōban)
• Kabardian: псыджэд (psəǯ̍ăd)
• Kazakh: қасқалдақ (qasqaldaq)
• Korean: 물닭 (muldak)
• Latin: fulica f

• Latvian: laucis m
• Lithuanian: laukys (lt) m
• Macedonian: лиска f (liska)
• Manchu: ᡥᠠᡵᠠᡤᡡᠨᠠ (haragūna)
• Navajo: tóidoozohii bidaaʼ łigaaígíí
• Norman: mèrquerole f (Jersey)
• Northern Sami: giehpavuoncci
• Occitan: folca f
• Persian: خشنسار‎ (fa) (xašansâr), ماغ‎ (fa) (mâğ)
• Polish: łyska (pl) f
• Portuguese: galeirão m
• Romanian: lișiță (ro) f
• Russian: лысу́ха (ru) f (lysúxa), лы́ска (ru) f (lýska)
• Sardinian: puliga f
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: лиска f

  Roman: liska (sh) f

• Slovak: lyska f
• Slovene: liska f
• Spanish: focha común f
• Swedish: sothöna (sv) c
• Ukrainian: ли́ска f (lýska)
• Venetian: fòłega f
• Vietnamese: sâm cầm (vi)
• Welsh: cwtiar f

Anagrams

• Coto, octo-, toco, toco-

---

Middle English

Noun

coot

1. Alternative form of cote (“coat”)

---

Scots

Etymology

Compare Dutch koot, Flemish keute.

Noun

coot (plural coots)

1. The ankle.