dodo

noun

do·​do ˈdō-(ˌ)dō 

plural dodoes or dodos

1

a

: an extinct heavy flightless bird (Raphus cucullatus synonym Didus ineptus of the family Columbidae) of the island of Mauritius that was larger than a turkey and was related to the pigeon

b

: an extinct flightless bird (Raphus solitarius) of the island of Réunion similar to and closely related to the dodo

2

a

: one hopelessly behind the times

b

: a stupid person

Illustration of dodo

• dodo 1a

Synonyms

• antediluvian
• Colonel Blimp
• fogy
• fogey
• fossil
• fud
• fuddy-duddy
• mossback
• reactionary
• stick-in-the-mud
• stuffed shirt

Examples of dodo in a Sentence

That dodo can't do anything right.

I feel like a complete dodo.

Recent Examples on the Web

The resulting animal will be a close approximation of a thylacine—or, in the company’s other de-extinction projects, a modern woolly mammoth or dodo. —Margherita Bassi, Smithsonian Magazine, 28 Oct. 2024

Projects to resurrect animals that have gone extinct more recently — the mammoth, dodo and Tasmanian tiger — are reaching an inflection point, although the goal is to create a hybrid approximation of those creatures, not carbon copies. —Katie Hunt, CNN, 5 Oct. 2024

With the funding, the company plans to, for example, rewrite elephant DNA with mammoth genes to create a mammoth-like embryo, and the company’s goal has expanded to editing and re-writing DNA to restore or preserve several extinct animals like the dodo bird or Tasmanian tiger. —Stephen Pastis, Forbes, 3 Oct. 2024

After Thursday’s goodbye, that atmosphere has gone the way of the dodo bird, the wooly mammoth, the saber-tooth tiger. —Dan Bernstein, Sportico.com, 26 Sep. 2024

Word History

Etymology

Portuguese doudo, from doudo silly, stupid

First Known Use

1628, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Phrases Containing dodo

• (as) dead as a dodo

Kids Definition

dodo

noun

do·​do ˈdōd-ō 

plural dodoes or dodos

1

: a large heavy flightless extinct bird related to the pigeons and formerly found on some of the islands of the Indian Ocean

2

a

: a person who is hopelessly behind the times

b

: a stupid person

Etymology

from Portuguese doudo, name given by Portuguese sailors to the bird, from doudo (adjective) "silly, stupid"