rook

1
[ rook ]
See synonyms for rook on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a black, European crow, Corvus frugilegus, noted for its gregarious habits.

  2. a sharper at cards or dice; swindler.

verb (used with object)
  1. to cheat; fleece; swindle.

Origin of rook

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English rok(e), Old English hrōc; cognate with Old Norse hrōkr, Old High German hruoh

Other definitions for rook (2 of 2)

rook2
[ rook ]

nounChess.
  1. one of two pieces of the same color that may be moved any number of unobstructed squares horizontally or vertically; castle.

Origin of rook

2
1300–50; Middle English rok<Old French roc<Arabic rukhkh<Persian rukh

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use rook in a sentence

  • One of the projects which these choice spirits agreed upon was a rooking expedition, the young rooks being then in season.

  • I had only to find a few friends to lend you me money, and sharpers to be after rooking you of all you borrowed.

    Curly | Roger Pocock
  • Is that the creaking and groaning, and rooking and tossing of old trees, afraid of being uprooted and flung into the spate?

  • He went to dinner with me, still bewailing the rooking I'd given him.

    The Players | Everett B. Cole
  • After taxes and the rooking the real estate boys gave him, his royalties were tied up for years to come.

    The Mind Digger | Winston Marks

British Dictionary definitions for rook (1 of 2)

rook1

/ (rʊk) /


noun
  1. a large Eurasian passerine bird, Corvus frugilegus, with a black plumage and a whitish base to its bill: family Corvidae (crows)

  2. slang a swindler or cheat, esp one who cheats at cards

verb
  1. (tr) slang to overcharge, swindle, or cheat

Origin of rook

1
Old English hrōc; related to Old High German hruoh, Old Norse hrōkr

British Dictionary definitions for rook (2 of 2)

rook2

/ (rʊk) /


noun
  1. a chesspiece that may move any number of unoccupied squares in a straight line, horizontally or vertically: Also called: castle

Origin of rook

2
C14: from Old French rok, ultimately from Arabic rukhkh

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012