coop

Meanings

1. 1
   noun

   a small enclosure or shelter for poultry or other small animals

   The hens returned to the wooden coop before nightfall.

2. 2
   verb

   to confine a person or animal in a small or restricted place, usually in the phrase coop up

   Weeks of rain cooped the children up inside the cottage.

From Middle English cowpe, related to Dutch kuip and German Kufe, words for a vat or cask, and ultimately associated with Latin cupa, 'cask.' A container or basket became an enclosure for birds and small animals; the verb then developed the figurative sense 'confine in cramped quarters.'

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