cuckoo clock

American  

noun

1. a wall or shelf clock, often carved and decorated, that announces the hours by a sound like the call of the cuckoo, usually accompanied by the appearance of an imitation bird through a little door.

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cuckoo clock British  

noun

1. a clock in which a mechanical cuckoo pops out with a sound like a cuckoo's call when the clock strikes

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Etymology

Origin of cuckoo clock

First recorded in 1775–85

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

cuckoo clock

"Switzerland has nurtured many unexpected good things -- Albert Einstein's physics, the world economy, and the cuckoo clock leap to mind -- and is again helping the world appreciate improbable people and ideas."

From Barron's ● Mar. 10, 2026

Condit screamed to her mother to call 911 and hurried to collect a few belongings: documents, pillows, a cuckoo clock.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 25, 2025

Her latest, “Time Is a Flower,” opens with a two-page spread that shows an inquisitive child gazing up at a cuckoo clock.

From New York Times ● Dec. 17, 2021

When Krista Box was growing up, there was a cuckoo clock on the dining room wall.

From Washington Post ● May 27, 2019

Herr Thiessen has a constant stream of custom work and tells Mr. Barris as much, indicating a shelf of variants on the traditional cuckoo clock that range from simple to ornate.

From "The Night Circus" by Erin Morgenstern