gowk

[gouk, gohk]

noun

1. British Dialect.,  cuckoo.

2. a fool or simpleton.

gowk

/ ɡaʊk /

noun

1. a stupid person; fool

2. a cuckoo

Word History and Origins

Origin of gowk¹

1275–1325; Middle English goke < Old Norse gaukr; cognate with Old English gēac, German Gauch

Word History and Origins

Origin of gowk¹

from Old Norse gaukr cuckoo; related to Old High German gouh

Example Sentences

This is another fun term derived from the cuckoo, known as a gowk in some Scottish dialects.

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The gowk’s-storm is a spring gale, particularly one that occurs at the time the cuckoo flies onto the scene.

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April 1 was traditionally Hunt the Gowk day, although the name is fading out.

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Gowk means cuckoo, and sending a mate on a fool’s errand is the name of the game: you should ask someone to deliver a sealed message asking for help, the contents of which instruct the recipient to pass it along and continue the chain.

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—Is the word spooney derived from the Anglo-Saxon spanan, sp�n, asponen, to allure, entice, and therefore equivalent to one allured, trapped, &c., a gowk or simpleton?

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