parrot

B1 Topic:Animals

US /ˈpæɹət/ UK /ˈpæɹət/ See IPA manual

Freq #7590

Meanings

1

noun
A brightly coloured tropical bird with a hooked beak that can copy human speech.

I bought a wonderful green parrot at the pet store.
2

verb
To repeat someone else's words without really understanding them.

The interviewee simply parroted the views of her favourite newspaper.

Verb forms

Verb forms are not available for this word yet.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

1 noun · a brightly coloured... psittacine

2 verb · to repeat someone else's... ape repeat

Word family

Forms parrotedparrotingparrots

Derived forms misparrotparrot-likeparrot-toedparrotbillparroterparroteseparrotfeatherparrotfinchparrotfishparrotheadparrothoodparrothouse

Related forms pollypopinjay

Appears in

Phrases (1)

See all

parrot fever
an infection acquired from infected birds that can cause pneumonia, also called psittacosis

Noun + noun

Simplified etymology

Parrot, recorded in the early 16th century, may reflect the custom of giving pet birds human names. It could represent French Pierrot, a pet form of Pierre, “Peter,” though the origin remains uncertain.

Etymology

First attested in 1525. From Middle French perrot, either a diminutive of Pierre or a shortened form of perroquet (whence also parakeet). Compare French pierrot and Occitan parrat. A number of origins have been suggested for perroquet, such as Spanish periquito and Italian parrocchetto. The relationship between these various words is disputed. Replaced earlier popinjay.

Topics

Animals

External links

# parrot

**Type:** Word
**Level:** B1
**Part of speech:** noun, verb
**IPA (US):** /ˈpæɹət/
**IPA (UK):** /ˈpæɹət/
**Frequency rank:** 7590

## Meanings
1. A brightly coloured tropical bird with a hooked beak that can copy human speech.
2. To repeat someone else's words without really understanding them.

## Examples
- I bought a wonderful green parrot at the pet store.
- The interviewee simply parroted the views of her favourite newspaper.

## Derived Forms
- misparrot
- parrot-like
- parrot-toed
- parrotbill
- parroter
- parrotese
- parrotfeather
- parrotfinch
- parrotfish
- parrothead
- parrothood
- parrothouse

## Related Forms
- polly
- popinjay

## Etymology
First attested in 1525. From Middle French perrot, either a diminutive of Pierre or a shortened form of perroquet (whence also parakeet). Compare French pierrot and Occitan parrat. A number of origins have been suggested for perroquet, such as Spanish periquito and Italian parrocchetto. The relationship between these various words is disputed. Replaced earlier popinjay.

## AI Etymology
Parrot first attested in 1525. From Middle French perrot, either a diminutive of Pierre or a shortened form of perroquet (whence also parakeet). Compare French pierrot and Occitan parrat. A number of origins have been suggested for perroquet, such as Spanish periquito and Italian parrocchetto. The relationship between these various words is disputed. Replaced earlier popinjay. Modern senses include a brightly coloured tropical bird with a hooked beak that can copy human speech and to repeat someone else's words without really understanding them. The wider word family includes derivatives such as misparrot, parrot-like, parrot-toed, parrotbill, parroter, and parrotese and related forms such as polly and popinjay.

## Topics
- Animals

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