parrot

American  

[par-uht] / ˈpær ət /

noun

• parrots
  plural

1. any of numerous hook-billed, often brilliantly colored birds of the order Psittaciformes, as the cockatoo, lory, macaw, or parakeet, having the ability to mimic speech and often kept as pets.

2. a person who, without thought or understanding, merely repeats the words or imitates the actions of another.

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verb (used with object)

• parrots,
  present (3rd person singular)
• parroted,
  past participle,  past
• parroting
  present participle

1. to repeat or imitate without thought or understanding.

2. to teach to repeat or imitate in such a fashion.

parrot British  

/ ˈpærət /

noun

1. any bird of the tropical and subtropical order Psittaciformes, having a short hooked bill, compact body, bright plumage, and an ability to mimic sounds

2. a person who repeats or imitates the words or actions of another unintelligently

3. facetious extremely disappointed

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verb

1. (tr) to repeat or imitate mechanically without understanding

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• parrotry
  noun
• parrotlike
  adjective
• parroty
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• parrots
  plural

Participles

• parroting
  present
• parroted
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• parrot
  simple
• parrots
  simple
• have parroted
  perfect
• has parroted
  perfect
• am parroting
  progressive
• are parroting
  progressive
• is parroting
  progressive
• have been parroting
  perfect progressive
• has been parroting
  perfect progressive

Past

• parroted
  simple
• had parroted
  perfect
• was parroting
  progressive
• were parroting
  progressive
• had been parroting
  perfect progressive

Future

• will parrot
  simple
• will have parroted
  perfect
• will be parroting
  progressive
• will have been parroting
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of parrot

1515–25; apparently < Middle French P ( i ) errot, diminutive of Pierre ( see parakeet), though a comparable sense of the French word is not known until the 18th century

Explanation

A parrot is a brightly colored tropical bird with a distinctly loud voice. If you see someone calling a colorful bird "Polly" and asking it if it wants a cracker, that's a parrot. Parrots are popular pets because many of them have the ability to mimic sounds they hear, sometimes including human speech. In fact, this skill has led to a secondary meaning of the word parrot, "mimic mindlessly." You could say, for example, "I'm not going to just parrot everything the teacher says — I'm no parrot." The origin of the word is uncertain, although we know that before parrot, this bird was called a popinjay.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

parrot parrots parroted parroting

And catching bird flu can push our most threatened species, such as the orange-bellied parrot, to the brink of extinction.

From Science Daily ● Aug. 24, 2026

“The owner and the parrot are deeply, deeply best friends,” she says.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 23, 2026

Parakeets are the UK's only naturalised parrot, according to the RSPB, and they are common sight around London and parts of the south-east of England.

From BBC ● Jun. 2, 2026

She soon realized that her new songs were beginning to parrot the themes and stories of those essays.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 11, 2026

“These,” says the parrot, “are the bones of my father.”

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

For hours on end, we cruise around, seeing parrots, wallabies, a goanna and a couple of echidnas - but no numbats.

From BBC ● Aug. 8, 2026

Thankfully, Jimmy knew of a nest being built on the outskirts of Bishop Auckland which would happily take in the giggle of galahs, alongside its impending parliament of owls and pandemonium of parrots.

From BBC ● Jul. 19, 2026

Among the 413 recordings that included name use, 88 appeared to show parrots using names as labels for particular people or animals.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 14, 2026

Nearly half of the participants submitted examples of parrots saying names.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 14, 2026

I learn to focus the binoculars and actually see one of the parrots fly out of the nest.

From "Liar & Spy" by Rebecca Stead

The expenses that Pentagon officials cited in congressional testimony and that then were parroted in media coverage are much lower than the costs the U.S. public will be forced to pay.

From MarketWatch ● May 28, 2026

Between songs, the camera cut to Jackson, who took on the voice of white America and parroted things that close-minded critics might say about the first solo rap artist to perform at the Super Bowl.

From Salon ● Feb. 10, 2025

Mr. Musk, for his part, has parroted this concern.

From Washington Times ● Jul. 4, 2023

Scott parroted this point in his opening statement Tuesday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2023

The next day, the national press parroted the figures it had been fed by Strauss: “U.S. Eliminates 95% of Fall-Out from the H-Bomb,” the New York Times reported on its front page.

From "Big Science" by Michael Hiltzik

Pochettino has been parroting “Miracle,” the movie about the 1980 Olympics, and coach Herb Brooks’s message about needing the right players, not necessarily the best ones.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 1, 2026

Robinson, whose real name is Stephen Yaxley-Lennon, addressed the crowds where he criticised politicians for "parroting" his ideas.

From BBC ● Sep. 14, 2025

A rallying cry soon came from @ladyfromtheoutside, a TikTok creator who found inspiration in Ms. Kalil’s parroting of Marie Antoinette.

From New York Times ● May 17, 2024

There’s a reason that even major tech companies are parroting the claims that “A.I. will kill us all.”

From Slate ● Nov. 15, 2023

Sometimes I'd spend the half hour parroting whatever Agent Samson had to say.

From "Me Talk Pretty One Day" by David Sedaris

Related Words

• recite