turkey

noun

tur·​key ˈtər-kē 

plural turkeys

1

plural also turkey : a large North American gallinaceous bird (Meleagris gallopavo) that is domesticated in most parts of the world

also : its flesh used as food

2

: failure, flop

especially : a theatrical production that has failed

3

: three successive strikes in bowling

4

: a stupid, foolish, or inept person

Illustration of turkey

• turkey 1

Synonyms

• berk [British]
• booby
• charlie [British]
• charley
• cuckoo
• ding-a-ling
• ding-dong
• dingbat
• dipstick
• doofus [slang]
• featherhead
• fool
• git [British]
• goose
• half-wit
• jackass
• lunatic
• mooncalf
• nincompoop
• ninny
• ninnyhammer
• nit [chiefly British]
• nitwit
• nut
• nutcase
• simp
• simpleton
• yo-yo

Examples of turkey in a Sentence

He was acting like a complete turkey.

only a turkey would think it's a good idea to go for a jog when the weather drops below zero

Recent Examples on the Web

Bird flu outbreak: The warning comes amid a bird flu outbreak that has killed millions of chickens and turkeys in recent months. —Rebecca Morin, USA TODAY, 19 Feb. 2025

Serve these turkey meatballs with either rice or hot pasta. —Southern Living Test Kitchen, Southern Living, 15 Feb. 2025

The Upshot My big takeaways from talking to the turkey calling GOAT are that studying real turkey sounds and experimenting with my calls to replicate those sounds will improve my calling. —Scott Einsmann, Outdoor Life, 12 Feb. 2025

This easy-to-prepare version showcases ground turkey and frozen peas and carrots. —Cathy Thomas, Orange County Register, 10 Feb. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Turkey, country in western Asia and southeastern Europe; from confusion with the guinea fowl, supposed to be imported from Turkish territory

First Known Use

1555, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing turkey

• cold turkey
• talk turkey
• turkey-cock
• turkey oak
• turkey shoot
• turkey trot
• turkey vulture
• water turkey

Kids Definition

turkey

noun

tur·​key ˈtər-kē 

plural turkeys

1

plural also turkey : a large North American bird that is related to the domestic chicken and is domesticated in most parts of the world

2

: something that is a failure

the new play was a turkey

3

: a stupid or foolish person

Etymology

from turkey-cock, an old word for "guinea fowl," from Turkey, a country in Asia Minor; so called because at one time people thought guinea fowl came from Turkey

Word Origin

The bird we now call the guinea fowl was once called the turkey. Turkey was the shortened version of turkey-cock and turkey-hen. The guinea fowl's original home was in Africa. However, Europeans discovered that it was good to eat and did well in captivity, so they brought it back to Europe. Some people mistakenly thought that the birds came from Turkey, and the name stuck. Later, when English settlers first arrived in America, they found a large bird living here that was also good to eat. They called this new bird turkey because it reminded them of the turkey they were familiar with back in Europe.

Geographical Definition

Turkey

geographical name

Tur·​key ˈtər-kē 

variants or now officially Türkiye

ˌtᵫr-kē-ˈye 

country in western Asia and southeastern Europe between the Mediterranean and Black seas; capital Ankara area 302,535 square miles (783,562 square kilometers), population 81,257,000 see ottoman empire

Note: Turkey was formerly the center of an empire whose capital was Constantinople. Since 1923 it has been a republic.

see also turk sense 1