† roon.1
Obsolete. rare.
A wheel (in quot. c1440: the wheel of Fortune).
ΘΚΠ
the mind > will > necessity > fate or destiny as determining events > [noun] > wheel of fortune
wheelc888
stagea1300
spoke1412
rooc1440
wheel of custronsc1450
c1440 (?a1400) Morte Arthure 3374 I sall redily roll þe roo at þe gayneste, And reche the þe riche wyn in rynsede coupes.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online June 2021).
roon.2
/ruː/, U.S. /ru/, Australian English /ruː/ colloquial (originally and chiefly Australian).
1. = kangaroo n. 1.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > mammals > group Implacenta > subclass Marsupialia (marsupials) > [noun] > family Macropodidae > kangaroo
kangaroo1773
roo1841
flyer1848
kanga1942
1841 J. Hood Jrnl. 26 Nov. in Austral. & East (1843) vi. 188 The hunting of the roo was generally a quick affair: he made a tremendous burst, leaping, not running, with incredible speed; but it was soon over.
1898 Bulletin (Sydney) 12 Nov. 14/4 There is a brisk demand for 'roos tails among London epicures.
1904 ‘S. Rudd’ Sandy's Select. 11 Dead 'roos were common enough, but seldom was a live one thrown in Sandy's way.
1933 Bulletin (Sydney) 30 Aug. 21/3 The whites have a kindly feeling for the 'roo.
1945 Coast to Coast 1944 80 First time he's seen a blasted roo.
1966 Southerly 26 110 Possums and roos to trap.
1977 Caravan World (Austral.) Jan. 59/1 The river had brought emus and 'roos close to the road.
1992 Milwaukee (Wisconsin) Jrnl. 22 July g1/1 The car's headlights illuminated the dirt road and the dry, brushy landscape of Wallula Gap, but there wasn't a roo in sight.
2005 LivingEtc Aug. 135/2 The outback is like nowhere else on earth, with its..bonkers wildlife, from Barbie-pink galahs to spring-heeled roos.
2. The meat of the kangaroo, as an article of food; = roo meat n. at Compounds 1b.
ΚΠ
1957 Papers & Proc. Royal Soc. Tasmania 91 123 Some bushmen enjoy kangaroo meat, while others consider that ‘a week of 'roo makes you appreciate mutton’.
1988 Sunday Mail (Queensland) (Nexis) 17 Jan. A..proposal for farmers to harvest kangaroos and put roast 'roo on Australia's dinner tables.
1998 HotLine Autumn–Winter 65/5 A forever-packed Australian bar which..serves well-priced platefuls of tuck including croc, roo and emu.
2002 L. Purcell Black Chicks Talking 338 There was emu and roo but we went for the asparagus, shame!
Compounds
C1.
a. General attributive and objective.
ΚΠ
1900 Bulletin (Sydney) 7 July 32/1 ‘I've seen the same thing..,’ said the 'roo-hunter.
1917 T. J. Briggs Life & Experiences Successful W. Austral. 120 I was there for a certain purpose..namely to obtain 'roo skins.
1936 Bulletin (Sydney) 15 Apr. 20/2 I have seen many an old-man 'roo so helpless and frantic with the 'roo-flies that any one could approach to within a few feet without the boomer taking the slightest notice.
1955 Bulletin (Sydney) 16 Feb. 12/1 The 'roo-barbecue was organised by visiting American scientist.
1968 K. Weatherly Roo Shooter 12 The roo bus swept round a corner, into full view about twenty yards away; the shooter hit the brakes, depressed the clutch and grabbed the ·22 all in the same instant.
1986 Canberra Times 30 Aug. 6/2 (heading) Qld. ‘threatening’ mass roo-killing.
2005 Courier-Mail (Brisbane) 26 Mar. 41/3 (headline) Malaysia air battle looms on roo route.
b.
roo meat n.
ΚΠ
1946 Bulletin (Sydney) 27 Feb. 15/3 Why do so many outback Australians shy off 'roo meat?
1957 Portsmouth (Ohio) Times 7 Mar. 7/3 (headline) Tabby Flabby? Try 'Roo Meat.
1977 Weekly Times (Melbourne) 19 Jan. 33/5 Not bad this 'ere veal. Not a touch on roo meat though.
2004 N. Angel Drown them in Sea 58 The dogs would have to eat nothing but roo meat, no dog biscuits.
roo shooter n.
ΚΠ
1919 Wide World Mag. May 56/1 ‘'Roo shooters moonlighting,’ he muttered, as he lay back, only to start up again.
1968 K. Weatherly (title) The roo shooter.
1980 Age (Melbourne) 1 Apr. 11/1 The national controversy between conservationists and those who want to increase the commercial exploitation of the kangaroo, notably the professional 'roo shooters and the farmers, [etc.].
1993 Coloradoan (Fort Collins) 27 Mar. a7/2 Kangaroos also are appearing increasingly in the gun sights of professional ‘roo shooters’.
roo steak n.
ΚΠ
1901 M. Vivienne Trav. W. Austral. ii. 27 Many people seem to prefer ‘Roo’ steak.
1926 K. S. Prichard Working Bullocks 21 When he had cooked and eaten the piece of 'roo steak he had been carrying.
2006 Time Out N.Y. 7 Sept. 101/4 Appetizers include..meatier dishes like 'roo steak.
C2.
roo bar n. = bull bar n.
ΘΚΠ
society > travel > means of travel > a conveyance > vehicle > parts and equipment of vehicles generally > [noun] > other parts
body bolt1810
safety chain1832
footplate1833
aisle1835
headlining1848
bumper1867
floor-plate1869
tension bar1879
suicide door1960
bull bar1967
roo bar1973
1973 J. Greenway Down among Wild Men 135 Unbendable ‘roo bar’ to shunt kangaroos as the cowcatchers on our old locomotives.
1992 P. Theroux Happy Isles Oceania iv. 75 A kangaroo but one that had been squashed by a truckie with a 'roo bar on the road to Tennant Creek.
2000 Land (N. Richmond, New S. Wales) 1 June (Trader section) 24/1 (advt.) Volvo G88, rego August with 24′ steel sheep and cattle crate, roo bar.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
roov.1
/ruː/, U.S. /ru/, Scottish English /ru/ Scottish (Orkney and Shetland).
transitive. To strip (a sheep) of wool by hand, instead of by shearing; to pluck (wool) in this manner; (also) to clip (a sheep).In quot. 1603: to pluck hair from (a horse's tail).
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > farming > animal husbandry > sheep-farming > sheep-shearing > shear sheep [verb (transitive)] > pluck wool
pullOE
roo1602
1602 [implied in: 1602 in G. Donaldson Court Bk. Shetland, 1602–4 (1954) 5 George Strang..decernis him to quyt himselff of the rowing of Mr William Laderis wyffis scheip. (at rooing n.)].
1603 in G. Donaldson Court Bk. Shetland (1954) 90 It is tryit..and ordanis that nane row or cut ony manis horse talis fra this furthe.
1615 Acts Lawting Sheriff Orkney (Maitland Club) 175 It is statut and ordanit that it sall nocht be lesum to no maner of persone nor persones to rowing [sic] ony scheip unto the tyme they be lawfullie warnit.
1629 Acts Lawting Sheriff Orkney (Maitland Club) 205 That nane tak..nor row sheip on Sonday.
1714 in H. Marwick Merchant Lairds (1936) I. 44 I expect ye will cause rou my sheep and see the woul weighted.
a1733 Shetland Acts 8 in Proc. Soc. Antiquaries Scotl. (1892) 26 198 That none mark lambs or row sheep..but at the sight of sufficient witnesses.
a1795 G. Low Fauna Orcadensis (1813) 5 The sheep in Orkney are never housed at any season, but those of a whole island, parish, &c. constitute a promiscuous flock, out of the power of the owners, except once a-year, when they are to be rowed, (as it is here called) and the lambs marked.
1809 A. Edmondston View Zetland Islands II. 211 About the middle of May, when the fleece begins to loosen spontaneously, it is pulled off with the hand; this operation is called rooing the sheep.
1856 E. Edmondston Sketches & Tales Shetland Islands xiv. 175 The wool is never shorn, but rooed, that is, pulled with the fingers from the creature's back, lock by lock.
1902 A. W. Johnston & A. Johnston Old-lore Misc. III. i. 25 No tenant shall be permitted to rue his sheep anywhere but in the said poinds.
1975 A. Deyell My Shetland 46 When the sheep were rooed, the finest wool from around the necks was kept to be spun and knitted at home during the winter into gossamer shawls.
2005 L. Abrams Myth & Materiality in Woman's World iv. 100 The wool was rooed from the animal (Shetland sheep were never shorn) and then cleaned, sorted, carded and spun.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
roov.2
/ruː/, U.S. /ru/, Australian English /ruː/ Australian colloquial.
intransitive. To hunt kangaroos. Frequently in present participle.
ΘΚΠ
the world > food and drink > hunting > hunting specific animals > hunt specific animal [verb (intransitive)] > hunt kangaroo
kangaroo1849
roo1907
1907 Bulletin (Sydney) 17 Oct. 14/1 Meeting the boss 'rooing... Midnight was invited to join the hunt.
1932 K. S. Prichard Kiss on Lips 82 Rooin' this week, Colonel?.. Cripes, that's something like!
1964 E. Lane Our Uncle Charlie 134 It always amazed anyone going rooing with Uncle how he could ride into the scrub.
1997 Weekend Austral. (Nexis) 18 Jan. 7 Mr Forbes worries about the young people of the town and their shaky future, especially with school not a priority for many, preferring—as his son does—to go rooing and pigging.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, November 2010; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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n.1c1440
n.21841v.11602v.21907