dodo

[ doh-doh ]
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noun,plural do·dos, do·does.
  1. any of several clumsy, flightless, extinct birds of the genera Raphus and Pezophaps, related to pigeons but about the size of a turkey, formerly inhabiting the islands of Mauritius, Réunion, and Rodriguez.

  2. Slang. a dull-witted, slow-reacting person.

  1. a person with old-fashioned, conservative, or outmoded ideas.

  2. a thing that is outmoded or obsolete.

Origin of dodo

1
First recorded in 1620–30, dodo is from the Portuguese word doudo, fool, madman (of uncertain origin); the bird apparently so called from its clumsy appearance

Other words from dodo

  • do·do·ism, noun

Words Nearby dodo

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How to use dodo in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dodo

dodo

/ (ˈdəʊdəʊ) /


nounplural dodos or dodoes
  1. any flightless bird, esp Raphus cucullatus, of the recently extinct family Raphidae of Mauritius and adjacent islands: order Columbiformes (pigeons, etc). They had a hooked bill, short stout legs, and greyish plumage: See also ratite

  2. informal an intensely conservative or reactionary person who is unaware of changing fashions, ideas, etc

  1. (as) dead as a dodo (of a person or thing) irretrievably defunct or out of date

Origin of dodo

1
C17: from Portuguese doudo, from doudo stupid

Derived forms of dodo

  • dodoism, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Other Idioms and Phrases with dodo

dodo

see under dead as a doornail.

The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.