covey

[kuhv-ee]

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noun, plural cov·eys.

a brood or small flock of partridges or similar birds.

a group, set, or company.

Origin of covey

1400–50; Middle English, variant of covee < Anglo-French, Old French, noun use of feminine of past participle of cover to hatch < Latin cubāre to lie down; cf. couvade, concubine

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for covey

bunch, brood, herd

Examples from the Web for covey

Historical Examples of covey

He started, his dreams gone from him like a covey of frightened quail.
The Duke Of Chimney Butte
G. W. Ogden
Passing now through woods they started a covey of partridges.
The Long Roll
Mary Johnston
However, deep in the woods they came upon a covey of partridges.
The Rover Boys on a Hunt
Arthur M. Winfield (Edward Stratemeyer)
This kick had the effect of not only weakening Hughes, but Covey also.
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass
This battle with Mr. Covey was the turning-point in my career as a slave.
The Narrative of the Life of Frederick Douglass
Frederick Douglass

British Dictionary definitions for covey

covey

noun

a small flock of grouse or partridge

a small group, as of people

Word Origin for covey

C14: from Old French covee, from cover to sit on, hatch; see couvade

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

Word Origin and History for covey

mid-14c., "brood of partridges," from Middle French covée "brood" (Modern French couvée), from Gallo-Romance *cubata, literally "hatchling," from past participle stem of Latin cubare "to sit, incubate, hatch" (see incubation).