peacock
American Heritage Dictionary:
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pea·cock
(pē'kŏk') 
n.
To strut about like a peacock; exhibit oneself vainly.
n.
- A male peafowl, distinguished by its crested head, brilliant blue or green plumage, and long modified back feathers that are marked with iridescent eyelike spots and that can be spread in a fanlike form.
- A peafowl, either male or female.
- A vain person; a dandy.
To strut about like a peacock; exhibit oneself vainly.
[Middle English pocock, pecok : po, peacock (from Old English pawa, pēa, peafowl , from Latin pāvō, peacock) + Middle English cok; see cock1.]
peacockish pea'cock'ish or pea'cock'y adj.Related Videos:
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peacock
Britannica Concise Encyclopedia:
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peacock
Any of three species (family Phasianidae) of resplendent birds of open lowland forests. Blue, or Indian (Pavo cristatus), and green, or Javanese (P. muticus), peacock males are 3550 in. (90130 cm) long and have a 60-in. (150-cm) train of metallic green tail feathers tipped with an iridescent eyespot ringed with blue and bronze. The train is erected, fanned out, and vibrated during courtship. Females (peahens) are duller and have no train. The male forms a harem of two to five hens, which lay their eggs in a depression in the ground. The blue and green male Congo peacock (Afropavo congensis) has a short rounded tail; the reddish and brown hen has a topknot.
For more information on peacock, visit Britannica.com.
Roget's Thesaurus:
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peacock
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In medieval symbolism, peacocks represented vanity and pride. Nowadays, some think they bring bad luck; more commonly, it is only their tail-feathers that are feared, and should not be worn, used in fans, or brought indoors as decorations. This belief is first noted around the mid-19th century, and has been widespread since; it is generally explained by the green eye-like markings, emblem of jealousy and the evil eye. The bird's screech is also said to foretell rain.
Columbia Encyclopedia:
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peacocks
peacock or peafowl, large bird of the genus Pavo, in the pheasant family, native to E Asia. There are two main species, the common (Pavo cristatus), and the Javanese (P. musticus) peacocks, both found in deep forest where they travel in small flocks. A third type, the Congo peacock, was discovered recently in Africa. Unusual peacocks are the Argus pheasant, with eyelike spots on its secondary flight feathers, and the white peacock, thought to be a mutation of the common peafowl. When the term peafowl is used, peacock then refers to the male of a species and peahen to the female. During courtship the crested male common peacock displays his elongated upper tail coverts-a magnificent green and gold erectile train adorned with blue-green "eyes"-before the duller-plumaged peahen. The peacock is well known as an ornamental bird, though it is quarrelsome and does not mix well with other domestic animals. The peacock figures in the Bible and in Greek and Roman myth, where it appears as the favorite bird of the goddess Hera, or Juno, and the bird was known to the pharaohs of Egypt and to 14th-century Europe, where it was roasted and served in its own plumage. Peafowl fly well despite their size, and roost in trees at night. Peacocks are classified in the phylum Chordata, subphylum Vertebrata, class Aves, order Galliformes, family Phasianidae.
Sign Language Videos:
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peacock
sign description: The G-hand placed at the mouth, opens and closes, followed by the open 5-hand making a sweeping and twisting motion.
The Dream Encyclopedia:
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Peacock
A beautiful bird of exquisite color and grace that seems to strut with pride and even with arrogance, the peacock may indicate that the dreamer is as "proud as a peacock" about some accomplishment and would like to "show off."
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peacocking
noun the practice of dressing outlandishly as a seduction strategy
noun the practice of dressing outlandishly as a seduction strategy
Furthermore, the peacocking of these PUAs [pick-up artists] is decidedly hen-like. They wear platform shoes, wigs, fake piercings, frilly shirts, purple furry vests, and even paint their nails. That the women they target are attracted to such trappings makes one wonder why they bother with men in the first place. It seems to me they could find more alluring specimens of femininity and fashion within their own bathroom stalls (enterstageright.com)
| pastorpreneur, pajamahadeen, Padre Pio | |
| pebcak, petrosexual, pharmbot |
Random House Word Menu:
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categories related to 'peacock'
See crossword solutions for the clue Translations:
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Peacock
Dansk (Danish)
n. - påfugl
v. intr. - spankulere
idioms:
- peacock blue påfugleblå
Nederlands (Dutch)
pauw, aansteller, zich aanstellen
Français (French)
n. - paon
v. intr. - parader, (Austral) s'approprier les meilleures parts de terrain (arg, arch)
idioms:
- peacock blue bleu canard
Deutsch (German)
n. - Pfau, Pfauhahn
v. - sich etwas einbilden, sich aufblähen
idioms:
- peacock blue pfauenblau
idioms:
- peacock blue πρασινογάλαζος
idioms:
- peacock blue blu pavone
Português (Portuguese)
n. - pavão (m)
idioms:
- peacock blue azul-pavão
idioms:
- peacock blue синий с отливом
Español (Spanish)
n. - pavo real
v. intr. - pavonearse
idioms:
- peacock blue azul-verdoso brillante
Svenska (Swedish)
n. - påfågel
中文（简体）(Chinese (Simplified))
孔雀, 好炫耀的人, 炫耀, 神气活现地走
idioms:
- peacock blue 孔雀蓝
中文（繁體）(Chinese (Traditional))
n. - 孔雀, 好炫耀的人
v. intr. - 炫耀, 神氣活現地走
idioms:
- peacock blue 孔雀藍
한국어 (Korean)
n. - 공작, 공작자리(성좌), 허영에 들떠 우쭐대는 사람
v. intr. - 자랑하다, 과시하다
日本語 (Japanese)
n. - クジャク, 見えっ張り
idioms:
- peacock blue ピーコックブルー
العربيه (Arabic)
(الاسم) طاووس,
עברית (Hebrew)
n. - טווס
v. intr. - התהדר כטווס
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American Heritage Dictionary
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition Copyright © 2007, 2000 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Updated in 2009. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Britannica Concise Encyclopedia. © 1994-2012 Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc. All rights reserved. Read more
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Roget's II: The New Thesaurus, Third Edition by the Editors of the American Heritage® Dictionary Copyright © 1995 byHoughton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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A Dictionary of English Folklore. Copyright © 2000, 2003 by Oxford University Press. All rights reserved.
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The Columbia Electronic Encyclopedia, Sixth Edition Copyright © 2012, Columbia University Press. Licensed from Columbia University Press. All rights reserved. www.cc.columbia.edu/cu/cup/.
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