crow

¹

[kroh]

noun

1. any of several large oscine birds of the genus Corvus, of the family Corvidae, having a long, stout bill, lustrous black plumage, and a wedge-shaped tail, as the common C. brachyrhynchos, of North America.

2. any of several other birds of the family Corvidae.

3. any of various similar birds of other families.

4. Astronomy.,  Crow, the constellation Corvus.

5. crowbar.

crow

²

[kroh]

verb (used without object)

crowed , crew , crowed , crowing .

1. to utter the characteristic cry of a rooster.

2. to gloat, boast, or exult (often followed byover ).

   Synonyms: brag, vaunt

3. to utter an inarticulate cry of pleasure, as an infant does.

noun

1. the characteristic cry of a rooster.

2. an inarticulate cry of pleasure.

Crow

³

[kroh]

noun

1. a member of a Siouan people of eastern Montana.

2. a Siouan language closely related to Hidatsa.

crow

¹

/ krəʊ /

noun

1. any large gregarious songbird of the genus Corvus, esp C. corone (the carrion crow) of Europe and Asia: family Corvidae . Other species are the raven, rook, and jackdaw and all have a heavy bill, glossy black plumage, and rounded wings See also carrion crow

2. any of various other corvine birds, such as the jay, magpie, and nutcracker

3. any of various similar birds of other families

4. offensive,  an old or ugly woman

5. short for crowbar

6. as directly as possible

7. informal,  to be forced to do something humiliating

8. stone

crow

²

/ krəʊ /

verb

1. (past tense crowed or crew) to utter a shrill squawking sound, as a cock

2. (often foll by over) to boast one's superiority

3. (esp of babies) to utter cries of pleasure

noun

1. the act or an instance of crowing

Crow

³

/ krəʊ /

noun

1. a member of a Native American people living in E Montana

2. the language of this people, belonging to the Siouan family

Other Word Forms

• crower noun
• crowingly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of crow¹

First recorded before 900; Middle English crowe, Old English crāwe, crāwa; cognate with Old High German krāwa; akin to Dutch kraai, German Krähe

Origin of crow²

First recorded before 1000; Middle English crouen, crowen, Old English crāwan; cognate with Dutch kraaien, German krähen; crow ¹

Origin of crow³

1795–1805; translation of North American French ( gens des ) Corbeaux Raven (people), literal translation of Crow apsá˙loke a Crow Indian

Word History and Origins

Origin of crow¹

Old English crāwa; related to Old Norse krāka, Old High German krāia, Dutch kraai

Origin of crow²

Old English crāwan; related to Old High German krāen, Dutch kraaien

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. have a crow to pick / pluck with someone, to have a reason to disagree or argue with someone.

2. eat crow, to be forced to admit to having made a mistake, as by retracting an emphatic statement; suffer humiliation.

   His prediction was completely wrong, and he had to eat crow.

3. as the crow flies, in a straight line; by the most direct route.

   The next town is thirty miles from here, as the crow flies.

More idioms and phrases containing crow

• as the crow flies
• eat crow

Example Sentences

In filing more than 100 lawsuits against the Biden administration, Paxton crowed about blocking the Democrats’ agenda.

From Salon

Gen. Rob Bonta has crowed that his Department of Justice had sued the administration nearly 40 times.

From Los Angeles Times

For Ohtani, the manager said, the challenge now is finding comfort in the crowed new routine.

From Los Angeles Times

There’s another mystery to solve, but this time it involves killer surveillance crows, a hooded stalker and at least a few visits to an insane asylum.

From Los Angeles Times

The following month the same newspaper was crowing:

From BBC

Related Words

• boast 
• brag 
• exult 
• gloat 
• squawk 
• strut