Showing results for "cooing"

• present participle of coo.

cooing

American  

[koo-ing] / ˈku ɪŋ /

noun

1. an act or instance of uttering or imitating the soft murmuring sound characteristic of doves.

   Jim recognized the sound as the cooing of a pigeon, although some of us thought it was an owl.

2. the act of murmuring or talking fondly or admiringly.

   I’m no fan of fancy goodies—not for me the cooing over iced Halloween cupcakes topped with fondant pumpkins.

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adjective

1. making the sound characteristic of doves.

   Since February, the lake has come alive again with a few pairs of mallards and a cooing eider duck.

2. murmuring or talking fondly or admiringly.

   Strolling on the boardwalk were cooing couples, briefcase-toting executives, and chattering children with their nannies.

Other Word Forms

• cooingly
  adverb

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Etymology

Origin of cooing

First recorded in 1660–70; coo ¹ ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun senses; coo ¹ ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses

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Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cooing

"They have been delighting people. Even grown men were like cooing," she laughed.

From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026

A furry AI pet batted its eyelashes at cooing onlookers.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 20, 2026

Instead, I’d laugh, cooing for more lemon to revel in those strong sensations over and over again.

From Salon ● Sep. 13, 2025

But Gadot gets the best number in a tepid batch, a villain’s anthem that welds together a half-dozen sneering, cooing, minor-key tempo shifts.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2025

Just as a newborn calf butts his head, or a young crocodile snaps his jaws, a baby makes his needs known by crinkling his brow, crying, cooing.

From "Charles and Emma: The Darwins' Leap of Faith" by Deborah Heiligman

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Related Words

• murmur

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