gowk
Americannoun
-
a stupid person; fool
-
a cuckoo
Etymology
Origin of gowk
1275–1325; Middle English goke < Old Norse gaukr; cognate with Old English gēac, German Gauch
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
This is another fun term derived from the cuckoo, known as a gowk in some Scottish dialects.
From Time • Mar. 20, 2014
The cuckoo is called a gowk in the North of England; the lark, a laverock; and the twire-snipe and weather-bleak, or weather-bleater, are the same birds.
From Popular Rhymes and Nursery Tales A Sequel to the Nursery Rhymes of England by Halliwell-Phillipps, J. O. (James Orchard)
It's no use just to be a good husband to her: any gowk can be that.
From A Safety Match by Hay, Ian
Just take yoursel' away, if ye please; for really ye're tormenting me—making a perfect gowk o' me, for neither end nor purpose.'
From Wilson's Tales of the Borders and of Scotland Volume 17 by Wilson, John Mackay
To "show a gliff of the gowk" is to behave foolishly.
From The Proverbs of Scotland by Hislop, Alexander
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
