Turkey Definition | Definition of Turkey at Dictionary.com

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Turkey - 11 dictionary results

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tur⋅key

[tur-kee]

Use Turkey in a Sentence

–noun, plural -keys, (especially collectively

) -key.

1.	a large, gallinaceous bird of the family Meleagrididae, esp. Meleagris gallopavo, of America, that typically has green, reddish-brown, and yellowish-brown plumage of a metallic luster and that is domesticated in most parts of the world.

2.	the flesh of this bird, used as food.

3.	ocellated turkey.

Slang.

a.	a person or thing of little appeal; dud; loser.

b.	a naive, stupid, or inept person.

c.	a poor and unsuccessful theatrical production; flop.

5.	Bowling. three strikes in succession.

—Idiom

6.	talk turkey, Informal. to talk frankly; mean business.

Origin:
1545–55; short for Turkey cock and Turkey hen cock and hen of Turkey, first applied to guinea fowl, later confused with the American bird

Tur⋅key

[tur-kee]

–noun

a republic in W Asia and SE Europe. 63,528,225; 296,184 sq. mi. (767,120 sq. km). (286,928 sq. mi. (743,145 sq. km) in Asia; 9257 sq. mi. (23,975 sq. km) in Europe). Capital: Ankara.

Compare Ottoman Empire.

Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
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Link To Turkey

tur·key (tûr'kē)

n. pl. tur·keys

1. A large North American bird (Meleagris gallopavo) that has brownish plumage and a bare wattled head and neck and is widely domesticated for food.
2. A related bird (Agriocharis ocellata) of Mexico and Central America, brilliantly colored and having eyelike spots on its tail.
3. A person considered inept or undesirable.
4. A failure, especially a failed theatrical production or movie.
Slang
1. A person considered inept or undesirable.
2. A failure, especially a failed theatrical production or movie.
Sports Three consecutive strikes in bowling.

[After Turkey from a confusion with the guinea fowl, once believed to have originated in Turkish territory.]

Tur·key (tûr'kē)

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A country of southwest Asia and southeast Europe between the Mediterranean and the Black seas. The region was dominated by many ancient civilizations and peoples, among them the Hittites (1800 B.C.), the Greeks (8th century B.C.), and the Persians (6th century B.C.), and in A.D. 395 it became part of the Byzantine Empire. The area was conquered by the Ottoman Turks between the 13th and 15th centuries and remained the core of the Ottoman Empire for more than 600 years. Its modern history dates to the rise of the Young Turks (after 1908) and the collapse of the empire in 1918. Under the leadership of Kemal Atatürk, a republic was proclaimed in 1923. Ankara is the capital and Istanbul the largest city. Population: 71,200,000.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Turkey

Tur"key\, n. [Cf. 2d Turkey.] An empire in the southeast of Europe and southwest of Asia.

Turkey carpet, a superior kind of carpet made in Asia Minor and adjoining countries, having a deep pile and composed of pure wool with a weft of different material. It is distinguishable by its coloring and patterns from similar carpets made in India and elsewhere.

Turkey oak. (Bot.) See Cerris.

Turkey red. (a) A brilliant red imparted by madder to cottons, calicoes, etc., the fiber of which has been prepared previously with oil or other fatty matter. (b) Cloth dyed with this red.

Turkey sponge. (Zo["o]l.) See Toilet sponge, under Sponge.

Turkey stone, a kind of oilstone from Turkey; novaculite; -- called also Turkey oilstone.

Turkey

Tur"key\, n.; pl. Turkeys. [So called because it was formerly erroneously believed that it came originally from Turkey: cf. F. Turquie Turkey. See Turk.] (Zo["o]l.) Any large American gallinaceous bird belonging to the genus Meleagris, especially the North American wild turkey (Meleagris gallopavo), and the domestic turkey, which was probably derived from the Mexican wild turkey, but had been domesticated by the Indians long before the discovery of America.

Note: The Mexican wild turkey is now considered a variety of the northern species (var. Mexicana). Its tall feathers and coverts are tipped with white instead of brownish chestnut, and its flesh is white. The Central American, or ocellated, turkey (M. ocellata) is more elegantly colored than the common species. See under Ocellated. The Australian, or native, turkey is a bustard (Choriotis australis). See under Native.

Turkey beard (Bot.), a name of certain American perennial liliaceous herbs of the genus Xerophyllum. They have a dense tuft of hard, narrowly linear radical leaves, and a long raceme of small whitish flowers. Also called turkey's beard.

Turkey berry (Bot.), a West Indian name for the fruit of certain kinds of nightshade (Solanum mammosum, and S. torvum).

Turkey bird (Zo["o]l.), the wryneck. So called because it erects and ruffles the feathers of its neck when disturbed. [Prov. Eng.]

Turkey buzzard (Zo["o]l.), a black or nearly black buzzard (Cathartes aura), abundant in the Southern United States. It is so called because its naked and warty head and neck resemble those of a turkey. Its is noted for its high and graceful flight. Called also turkey vulture.

Turkey cock (Zo["o]l.), a male turkey.

Turkey hen (Zo["o]l.), a female turkey.

Turkey pout (Zo["o]l.), a young turkey. [R.]

Turkey vulture (Zo["o]l.), the turkey buzzard.

Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : Turkey

Spanish: pavo,

German: der Truthahn,

Japanese: 七面鳥

More Translations »

Turkey

Republic straddling southeastern Europe and the Middle East, bordered by the Black Sea to the north, Georgia and Armenia to the northeast, Iran to the east, Iraq and Syria to the southeast, the Mediterranean Sea and the Aegean Sea to the southwest, and Greece and Bulgaria to the northwest. Ninety-seven percent of the country is in Asia. Ankara is its capital, but Istanbul is its largest city and former imperial capital.

Note: The Ottoman Empire emerged in Anatolia (the western portion of Asian Turkey) during the thirteenth century and survived until 1918. At its height, during the sixteenth century, the empire stretched from the Persian Gulf to western Algeria and included all of southeastern Europe.

Note: The declining Ottoman Empire allied with Germany, Austria, and Bulgaria in World War I and suffered disintegration and Greek occupation at the end of the war.

Note: After the rise of a nationalist movement led by Kemal Ataturk, the Republic of Turkey was established in 1923.

Note: In 1871, the archaeologist and scholar Heinrich Schliemann discovered the site of ancient Troy on the west coast of Asian Turkey.

Note: The country's relations with Greece have been characterized by tension and conflict for centuries.

Note: Turkey has been a member of NATO since 1952.

Note: Parts of the country were devastated by an earthquake in 2000.

Note: Turkey has long resisted separatist demands from militant Kurds in the eastern part of the country.

turkey

1541, "guinea fowl" (Numida meleagris), imported from Madagascar via Turkey, by Near East traders known as turkey merchants. The larger North American bird (Meleagris gallopavo) was domesticated by the Aztecs, introduced to Spain by conquistadors (1523) and thence to wider Europe, by way of North Africa (then under Ottoman rule) and Turkey (Indian corn was originally turkey corn or turkey wheat in Eng. for the same reason). The word turkey was first applied to it in Eng. 1555 because it was identified with or treated as a species of the guinea fowl. The Turkish name for it is hindi, lit. "Indian," probably via Fr. dinde (contracted from poulet d'inde, lit. "chicken from India"), based on the common misconception that the New World was eastern Asia. The New World bird itself reputedly reached England by 1524 at the earliest estimate, though a date in the 1530s seems more likely. By 1575, turkey was becoming the usual main course at an English Christmas. Meaning "inferior show, failure," is 1927 in show business slang, probably from the bird's reputation for stupidity. Meaning "stupid, ineffectual person" is recorded from 1951. Turkey shoot "something easy" is World War II-era, in ref. to marksmanship contests where turkeys were tied behind a log with their heads showing as targets.

Turkey

Slang for an investment that yields disappointing results or generally turns out worse than expected. Failed business deals, securities that realize significant losses, and unsuccessful IPOs could all be called "turkeys".

Investopedia Commentary

For an individual investor, a turkey could be a speculative equity investment in a startup technology company that subsequently goes bankrupt. For a corporation, a turkey could be the purchase of a smaller company that ends up producing much less revenue than anticipated, making it an investment that essentially gobbles up the company's profits.

turkey

An investment that has performed poorly.

turkey

see cold turkey; talk turkey.

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