cockatoo

[ kok-uh-too, kok-uh-too ]

/ ˈkɒk əˌtu, ˌkɒk əˈtu /

Save This Word!

noun, plural cock·a·toos.

any of numerous large, noisy, crested parrots of the genera Cacatua, Callocephalon, Calyptorhynchus, etc., of the Australasian region, having chiefly white plumage tinged with yellow, pink, or red: popular as a pet.

Australian.

a person who owns and works a small farm or ranch.
Slang. a lookout posted by criminals or the operators of illegal gambling games.

COMPARE MEANINGS

Click for a side-by-side comparison of meanings. Use the word comparison feature to learn the differences between similar and commonly confused words.

QUIZ

THINGAMABOB OR THINGUMMY: CAN YOU DISTINGUISH BETWEEN THE US AND UK TERMS IN THIS QUIZ?

Do you know the difference between everyday US and UK terminology? Test yourself with this quiz on words that differ across the Atlantic.

Question 1 of 7

In the UK, COTTON CANDY is more commonly known as…

candystring

candyfloss

candypuff

TAKE THE QUIZ TO FIND OUT

Origin of cockatoo

1610–20; <Dutch kaketoe<Malay kakatua, perhaps etymologizing alteration of Central Moluccan jaka any psittacine bird, by association with Malay kakak sibling, kakak tua older sibling); spelling copies cock¹

Words nearby cockatoo

cockamamie, cock-and-bull story, cockapoo, cock a snook, cockatiel, cockatoo, cockatrice, Cockayne, cockboat, cockchafer, Cockcroft

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use cockatoo in a sentence

With the right method, the cockatoos might fly by and keep hunting for a different target.
Need to keep cockatoos out of your trash? Try bricks, sticks or shoes|Erin Garcia de Jesús|September 12, 2022|Science News
Wickham says this is “fabulous news for this large, quiet and beautiful cockatoo,” which just 20 years before had numbered only 110 individuals.
Post-fire Australia will provide travelers with more opportunities for ‘restorative tourism’|Elizabeth Heath|March 18, 2021|Washington Post
The doves were cooing and fluttering in the cornices and the cockatoo was preening his lemon colored topknot.
The Adventures of Kathlyn|Harold MacGrath
And we had pets; I remember I once caught a live cockatoo, and trained him to help me in my hunting expeditions.
The Adventures of Louis de Rougemont|Louis de Rougemont

Sentinel Cockatoo, however, was caught napping, and the garrison of the bower had to run for it.
Blackwood's Edinburgh Magazine, Vol 58, No. 357, July 1845|Various
This is about the size of the great white cockatoo; the length twenty-two inches.
The Voyage Of Governor Phillip To Botany Bay|Arthur Phillip
I wish she had not thrust herself in,” said Bessie, “to prevent me from getting on with the child over the cockatoo.
Modern Broods|Charlotte Mary Yonge

British Dictionary definitions for cockatoo

cockatoo

/ (ˌkɒkəˈtuː, ˈkɒkəˌtuː) /

noun plural -toos

any of various parrots of the genus Kakatoe and related genera, such as K. galerita (sulphur-crested cockatoo), of Australia and New Guinea. They have an erectile crest and most of them are light-coloured

Australian and NZ a small farmer or settler

Australian informal a lookout during some illegal activity

Word Origin for cockatoo

C17: from Dutch kaketoe, from Malay kakatua

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