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talk turkey

 - 9 dictionary results

tur⋅key

  [tur-kee]
–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.
4. 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.
Use talk turkey in a Sentence
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
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2010.
Cite This Source Link To talk 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.

  2. Slang

    1. A person considered inept or undesirable.

    2. A failure, especially a failed theatrical production or movie.

  3. Sports Three consecutive strikes in bowling.


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

talk turkey

To discuss in a straightforward manner: “The time has come to talk turkey about our national debt.”


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.
The American Heritage® New Dictionary of Cultural Literacy, Third Edition
Copyright © 2005 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Slang Dictionary
talk turkey

  1. tv.
    to talk serious business; to talk frankly. : We've got to sit down and talk turkey—get this thing wrapped up. , It's time to talk turkey and quit messing around.
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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turkey

  1. n.
    a failure; a sham. (Especially a stage production.) : The turkey at the town theater closed on its first night.
  2. n.
    a stupid person. : Who's the turkey who put the scallops in the scalloped potatoes?
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Word Origin & History

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.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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Financial Dictionary

turkey

An investment that has performed poorly.

Wall Street Words: An A to Z Guide to Investment Terms by David L. Scott.
Copyright © 2003. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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Idioms & Phrases

talk turkey

Speak plainly, get to the point, as in Don't call me until you're ready to talk turkey. This expression allegedly comes from a tale about an Indian and a white man who hunted together and divided the game. When the white man said, "I'll take the turkey and you the buzzard, or you take the buzzard and I the turkey," the Indian replied, "Talk turkey to me." Whether or not this tale had a true basis, the term was recorded in its present meaning by about 1840.

The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997. Published by Houghton Mifflin.
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