rooster
Americannoun
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roosters
plural
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the male of domestic fowl and certain game birds; cock.
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a representation of this bird, used as an emblem of the Democratic Party from 1842 to 1874.
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Informal. a cocky person.
noun
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of rooster
Explanation
A rooster is a male chicken. If your cute baby chick grows up to crow loudly first thing every morning, he's probably a rooster. The word rooster is an American invention, inspired by the rooster's habit of roosting, or standing up on a perch while sleeping or while on the lookout for danger. In the UK, a rooster is more likely to be called a cock or cockerel. In a flock of birds, the rooster's job is to defend the chickens and their nests from predators and other roosters.
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.
See Examples For:
But some analysts believe that her fashion - leathers, furs, and a "rooster" hairstyle - are also signs that she is being groomed to lead the country.
From BBC ● May 5, 2026
Mr. Chalamet, who is onscreen virtually nonstop and moves around it like a rooster on fire, can certainly turn on the charm when he wants to, as in “Wonka.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 24, 2025
Jefferson reasoned that Americans had never contracted to make King George III the main rooster — he could take his monarchy and stuff it.
From Salon ● Jul. 12, 2025
While he speaks to me from his home in Sierra Leone, a rooster crows in the background, punctuating his sentences like a barnyard hype man.
From Slate ● Mar. 26, 2025
“Rocky’s a rooster, not a hen. I raised him from a chick.”
From "Unusual Chickens for the Exceptional Poultry Farmer" by Kelly Jones
Nearby were soft-toy footballers resembling Portugal's Cristiano Ronaldo, fluffy roosters in France polos and teddy bears in Spain kits.
From Barron's ● Jun. 10, 2026
The gate is adorned with a sculpted round medallion of Oseguera’s trademark, two roosters.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 19, 2026
San Bernardino County Animal Control found 17 dead roosters and eight live roosters and tagged 61 roosters in boxes.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 21, 2025
"Once those roosters and hens go down, you have no vaccine."
From Salon ● Jun. 1, 2024
I’d seen roosters chase hens, catch up, climb on top of them, and dig sharp beaks into the hen’s head as she cackled and screeched and he flapped his wings.
From "When I Was Puerto Rican" by Esmeralda Santiago
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.
