cooee

[ koo-ee ]

noun

a prolonged, shrill, clear call or cry used as a signal by Aboriginal inhabitants of Australia and adopted by the settlers in the country.

verb (used without object),coo·eed, coo·ee·ing.

to utter the call “cooee.”

Origin of cooee

First recorded in 1780–90, cooee is from the Dharuk word gu-wī

Words Nearby cooee

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

How to use cooee in a sentence

One was the fact that his father should, according to his account, cry cooee!
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | A. Conan Doyle
When about a hundred yards from the Pool I heard a cry of cooee!
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | A. Conan Doyle
When about a hundred yards from the pool I heard a cry of “cooee!”
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | Arthur Conan Doyle
One was the fact that his father should, according to his account, cry ‘cooee!’
The Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | Arthur Conan Doyle
The Coroner: I understand that the cry of cooee was a common signal between you and your father?
Adventures of Sherlock Holmes | A. Conan Doyle

British Dictionary definitions for cooee

cooee

cooey

/ (ˈkuːiː) /

interjection

a call used to attract attention, esp (originally) a long loud high-pitched call on two notes used in the Australian bush

verbcooees, cooeeing, cooeed, cooeys, cooeying or cooeyed

(intr) to utter this call

noun

Australian and NZ informal calling distance (esp in the phrase within (a) cooee (of))

Origin of cooee

C19: from a native Australian language

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

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