A turkey is a large bird that is kept on a farm for its meat.
Turkey is the flesh of this bird eaten as food.
It's a proper Christmas dinner, with turkey and bread sauce.
2. See also cold turkey
turkey in British English
(ˈtɜːkɪ)
nounWord forms: plural-keys or -key
1.
a large gallinaceous bird, Meleagris gallopavo, of North America, having a bare wattled head and neck and a brownish iridescent plumage. The male is brighter and has a fan-shaped tail. A domestic variety is widely bred for its flesh
2.
the flesh of the turkey used as food
3.
a similar and related bird, Agriocharis ocellata (ocellated turkey), of Central and N South America
4.
any of various Australian birds considered to resemble the turkey, such as the bush turkey
5. slang, mainly US and Canadian
a.
a dramatic production that fails; flop
b.
a thing or person that fails; dud
6. derogatory, slang, mainly US and Canadian
a stupid, incompetent, or unappealing person
7. slang
(in tenpin bowling) three strikes in a row
8. cold turkey
9. talk turkey
Word origin
C16: shortened from Turkey cock (hen), used at first to designate the African guinea fowl (apparently because the birdwas brought through Turkish territory), later applied by mistake to the American bird
Turkey in British English
(ˈtɜːkɪ)
noun
a republic in W Asia and SE Europe, between the Black Sea, the Mediterranean, and the Aegean: the centre of the Ottoman Empire; became a republic in 1923. The major Asian part, consisting mainly of an arid plateau, is separated from European Turkey by the Bosporus, Sea of Marmara, and Dardanelles. Languages: Turkish (official), Kurdish, and Arabic minority languages. Religion: Muslim majority. Currency: lira. Capital: Ankara. Pop: 80 745 020 (2017 est). Area: 780 576 sq km (301 380 sq miles)
Turkey in American English
(ˈtɜrki)
country occupying Asia Minor & a SE part of the Balkan Peninsula: 300,947 sq mi (779,450 sq km); pop. 56,473,000; cap. Ankara
turkey in American English
(ˈtɜrki)
nounWord forms: pluralˈturkeys or ˈturkey
1. US
a.
any of a family (Meleagrididae) of large, gallinaceous North American birds witha small, naked head and spreading tail, including a wild or domesticated species (Meleagris gallopavo) bred as poultry and a wild species (Agriocharis ocellata) of Central America, with eyespots on the tail
b.
the flesh of a turkey
2. US, Slang
a failure
said esp. of a theatrical production
3. US, Slang
an inept, stupid, or unpleasant person
4. US, Bowling
three strikes in a row
Idioms:
talk turkey
Word origin
earlier Turkey-cock, term orig. applied to the guinea fowl, sometimes imported through Turkey and fora time identified with the Am fowl
The turkey farm group was taken over last month in a deal arranged by administrators.
The Sun (2016)
You need to go cold turkey before getting back on the hunt for your thunderbolt man.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Spoon and spread the sauce over the turkey to completely cover.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
The only way to do it is to go cold turkey.
The Sun (2016)
The only solution is to go cold turkey.
The Sun (2016)
I've got three turkey dinners to go to.
The Sun (2016)
DANGEROUS bird flu strain H5N8 has hit a turkey farm.
The Sun (2016)
A strain of bird flu has been detected on a turkey farm in Lincolnshire.
Times, Sunday Times (2016)
Ties cover turkey necks and sprouting chest hair.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
Second day in a row working undercover at the turkey farm.
The Sun (2011)
We must not begrudge those troops the money for turkey dinners or carol concerts.
The Sun (2010)
Mix all ingredients and serve with cold or hot turkey.
Kowalski, Robert E The 8-Week Cholesterol Cure (1990)
Spoon and spread the sauce over the turkey to completely cover.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
Twenty-five contained only beef and others included chicken and turkey.
Times, Sunday Times (2014)
We are eating steak but talking turkey.
Times, Sunday Times (2010)
Add the corn and any shredded white turkey meat and dash of cream to taste.
The Sun (2014)
Our sheep farms and our horse farms and our turkey farms.
Times, Sunday Times (2013)
It is mainly a turkey farm but they also grow olives.
The Sun (2015)
We could end up with saggy turkey necks too because extra sun will cause loose skin and baggy eyelids.
The Sun (2012)
We have gone down the road of a roast turkey dinner and the time for turning back has passed.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Stir turkey into the sauce and heat for a minute and add rice and mix lightly with a rice fork.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
She needed to go completely cold turkey from food and all the associations of overeating that came with meal and snack times.
The Sun (2009)
Transfer the turkey to a large roasting tray, drizzle with olive oil and season well.
The Sun (2015)
Wealthy people had turkey, chicken and game pies.
The Sun (2012)
This has always been the time when we talk turkey, or mammoth.
Times, Sunday Times (2012)
Head for plain meats such as turkey, ham or beef.
Times, Sunday Times (2011)
This can form little creases under the chin, à la turkey neck.
The Sun (2015)
Word lists with
turkey
country, currency, inhabitant
In other languages
turkey
British English: turkey /ˈtɜːkɪ/ NOUN
A turkey is a large bird that is kept on a farm for its meat.
American English: turkey
Arabic: دِيكٌ رُومِيّ
Brazilian Portuguese: peru
Chinese: 火鸡
Croatian: purica
Czech: krocan
Danish: kalkun
Dutch: kalkoen
European Spanish: pavo
Finnish: kalkkuna
French: dinde
German: Truthahn
Greek: γαλοπούλα
Italian: tacchino
Japanese: 七面鳥
Korean: 칠면조
Norwegian: kalkun
Polish: indyk
European Portuguese: peru
Romanian: curcan
Russian: индюк
Latin American Spanish: pavo
Swedish: kalkon
Thai: ไก่งวง
Turkish: hindi
Ukrainian: індичка
Vietnamese: gà tây
British English: Turkey /ˈtɜːkɪ/ NOUN
Turkey is a republic in western Asia and south-eastern Europe.
American English: Turkey
Arabic: تُرْكِيَا
Brazilian Portuguese: Turquia
Chinese: 土耳其
Croatian: Turska
Czech: Turecko
Danish: Tyrkiet
Dutch: Turkije
European Spanish: Turquía
Finnish: Turkki
French: Turquie
German: Türkei
Greek: Τουρκία
Italian: Turchia
Japanese: トルコ
Korean: 터키
Norwegian: Tyrkia
Polish: Turcja
European Portuguese: Turquia
Romanian: Turcia
Russian: Турция
Latin American Spanish: Turquía
Swedish: Turkiet
Thai: ประเทศตุรกี
Turkish: Türkiye
Ukrainian: Туреччина
Vietnamese: Thổ Nhĩ Kỳ
All related terms of 'turkey'
cold turkey
Cold turkey is the unpleasant physical reaction that people experience when they suddenly stop taking a drug that they have become addicted to.
talk turkey
to discuss something in an honest , direct and serious way
turkey cock
a male turkey
turkey nest
a small earth dam adjacent to, and higher than, a larger earth dam, to feed water by gravity to a cattle trough , etc
Turkey oak
an oak tree, Quercus cerris , of W and S Europe, with deeply lobed hairy leaves
Turkey red
a moderate or bright red colour
turkey trot
an early ragtime one-step , popular in the period of World War I
wild turkey
any wild form of the North American domesticated turkey
brush turkey
any of several gallinaceous birds, esp Alectura lathami , of New Guinea and Australia, having a black plumage : family Megapodidae ( megapodes )
plain turkey
a bustard
scrub turkey
→ another name for megapode
turkey brown
an angler's name for a species of mayfly , Paraleptophlebia submarginata
Turkey carpet
a wool carpet made in one piece and having a deep velvety pile and rich glowing colours
turkey shoot
an opportunity that someone can easily take advantage of
water turkey
→ anhinga
turkey buzzard
a New World vulture , Cathartes aura , having a dark plumage and naked red head
turkey vulture
a dark-colored vulture ( Cathartes aura ) of temperate and tropical America, resembling a turkey in having a naked , reddish head
a turkey shoot
a battle or other conflict in which one side is so much stronger or better armed than the other that the weaker side has no chance at all. This expression is usually used to suggest that the situation is unfair .
talegalla
a member of a genus of megapod birds native to Indonesia , Papua New Guinea and Australia