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

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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

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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

The couple, along with their four children and his 80-year-old mother, were greeted by cannon salutes and lavish dinners including parrot soup.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 26, 2026

They recovered 233 dogs, 66 cats, one goose, one parrot, one pig, one rabbit and two goats; all are being kept in county facilities as evidence in the case against De Anda.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 18, 2026

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

Katie worked at Pets at Home because of her love of animals, and had two pet guinea pigs and a parrot.

From BBC ● Jun. 14, 2026

“When we are free of the parrot, then we shall truly be free.”

From "Challenger Deep" by Neal Shusterman

"The appellant keeps a few chickens, ducks and horses on site along with a variety of more unusual animals including eagles, falcons, parrots, hornbills, mongooses, skunks, porcupine and wallaby," they said.

From BBC ● Oct. 9, 2026

Known for his math skills and obsession with exotic parrots, Lemssouguer has faced big swings before, given his penchant for taking large stakes in companies in turmoil.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 8, 2026

Fifty eggs suspected to be those of endangered parrots were intercepted at South Africa's main airport in Johannesburg last Thursday - and some of them have now hatched.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026

The recordings revealed that parrots do not always use names the way humans do.

From Science Daily ● Jun. 14, 2026

The women were all sitting up and knitting or riffling through magazines or putting their hair in pin curls and chattering like parrots in a parrot house.

From "The Bell Jar" by Sylvia Plath

Throughout the show, fans shook lightsticks, parroted Katseye's dance moves and, in some cases, spontaneously burst into tears.

From BBC ● Sep. 4, 2026

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

Fittingly, “Collective” has more than one protagonist, although its principal hero is Catalin Tolontan, a journalist at a sports newspaper who asks tough questions of bureaucrats who appear used to having their official line parroted.

From New York Times ● Jan. 30, 2024

Scott parroted this point in his opening statement Tuesday.

From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 17, 2023

“Bisguier also my second,” parroted Bobby, trying to duplicate Benko’s Magyar accent.

From "Endgame" by Frank Brady

But at the same time he’s abetting the union campaign by parroting their arguments.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 28, 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

All sorts of journalists and media outlets are parroting the point.

From Slate ● Mar. 22, 2024

“You never get in trouble for telling the truth,” I said, parroting Mrs. Merritt.

From "Three Little Words: A Memoir" by Ashley Rhodes-Courter

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Related Words

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