hoopoe means any Old World bird of genus Upupa, especially Upupa epops (Eurasian hoopoe), known for its distinctive plumage, fanlike crest, and slender bill.
hoopoe is pronounced /ˈhupu/.
Why “hoopoe” is a great word
A small, terrestrial bird of the genus Upupa, distinguished by its pinkish-buff body barred in black and white, a slender, decurved bill, and a magnificent fan-shaped crest of cinnamon-and-black feathers. From the alteration of obsolete 'hoopoop', from earlier 'hoop', from Middle French and Old French 'huppe', from Latin 'upupa', ultimately onomatopoeic in origin, imitating the bird's cry; first attested in English in the 1660s. Unlike the 'hornbill,' a heavy-beaked giant of tropical forests, or the 'woodpecker,' a specialized carpenter of tree trunks, the hoopoe is a delicate prodder of open ground and cultivated edges. It is the flash of barred wings over a sun-baked field, the coral-red bill probing arid soil for grubs, and the sudden theatrical unfurling of its crown like a heraldic banner—a quiet emblem of the ordinary earth made ornate by a soft, three-note cry haunting the still air.
Etymology
Alteration of obsolete hoopoop, from earlier hoop, from Middle French and Old French huppe, from Latin upupa, ultimately onomatopoeic; Compare Ancient Greek ἔποψ (épops), Persian پوپو (popo).
noun
- Any Old World bird of genus Upupa, especially Upupa epops (Eurasian hoopoe), known for its distinctive plumage, fanlike crest, and slender bill.“For quotations using this term, see Citations:hoopoe.”
Words closest in meaning
By meaning, not spelling — each word's AI semantic fingerprint, nearest first.
- curlew 83% match — Any of several migratory wading birds in the genus Numenius, remarkable for their long, slender, downcurved bills. vs hoopoe →
- lapwing 81% match — Any of several medium-sized wading birds belonging to the subfamily Vanellinae, within family Charadriidae. vs hoopoe →
- kestrel 80% match — Any of various small falcons of the genus Falco that hover while hunting. vs hoopoe →
- fauvette 78% match — Any of a number of small songbird, such as nightingales or warblers. vs hoopoe →
- magpie 78% match — One of several kinds of bird in the family Corvidae, especially Pica pica. vs hoopoe →
- whippoorwill 78% match — A nocturnal insectivorous bird of North America (Antrostomus vociferus, syn. Caprimulgus vociferus), a type of nightjar, named after its characteristic call. vs hoopoe →
- jackdaw 78% match — A bird of the genus Coloeus, similar in appearance to crows and found within the same family; traditionally associated with church towers and ruins, where it frequently likes to nest. vs hoopoe →
- mockingbird 78% match — Any of various long-tailed American songbirds of the genera Mimus and Melanotis, noted for their ability to mimic calls of other birds. vs hoopoe →