parrot
[par-uh t]
- 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.
- a person who, without thought or understanding, merely repeats the words or imitates the actions of another.
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- to repeat or imitate without thought or understanding.
- to teach to repeat or imitate in such a fashion.
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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
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Examples from the Web for parroted
Contemporary Examples
Liebman calls it a “lie” that was frequently “parroted” by legislators on the floor of the state House and Senate.
In recent years, this idea has been parroted so often that it's become known as the “Washington consensus.”
Historical Examples
But now he parroted with unconscious irony the phrases he had once so admired.
In a Little TownRupert Hughes
Obligingly she parroted over to Fibsy the lingo of the message.
The Mark of CainCarolyn Wells
Joe, under his breath, parroted the words of the Sov officer.
Frigid FracasDallas McCord Reynolds
"Don't do anything you'd be sorry for," he parroted, sarcastical, the young man's recent admonition to the captain.
The Black BagLouis Joseph Vance
Lorry pulled her eyes down to the cherubic little face as she parroted dully.
I'll Kill You TomorrowHelen Huber
parrot
- any bird of the tropical and subtropical order Psittaciformes, having a short hooked bill, compact body, bright plumage, and an ability to mimic soundsRelated adjective: psittacine
- a person who repeats or imitates the words or actions of another unintelligently
- sick as a parrot usually facetious extremely disappointed
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- (tr) to repeat or imitate mechanically without understanding
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Word Origin
C16: probably from French paroquet; see parakeet
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
© William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
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Word Origin and History for parroted
parrot
v.
"repeat without understanding," 1590s, from parrot (n.). Related: Parroted; parroting.
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parrot
n.
1520s, of uncertain origin, perhaps from dialectal Middle French perrot, from a variant of Pierre "Peter;" or perhaps a dialectal form of perroquet (see parakeet). Replaced earlier popinjay. The German naturalist Alexander von Humboldt in South America in 1800 encountered a very old parrot that was the sole speaker of a dead Indian language, the original tribe having gone extinct.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper