covey
/ˈkʌvi
/noun (plural coveys)
1A small flock of birds, especially partridge.Instead of holding individual territories, both species form coveys, which are flocks of 4-6 fused family groups....
- In two days, I walked past staunch points into approximately 70 coveys of wild birds.
- In non-breeding seasons, Northern Bobwhites congregate in coveys of up to 20 birds.
1.1A small group of people or things: coveys of actors rushed through the rooms...
- At least they were on time; he spotted a covey of white uniforms clustered around the guards, signing in.
- President Reagan's lack of interest in the details might be fine fun for the coveys of arms control quails.
- The working stiff is not a white-collar writer rubbing elbows with a covey of billionaires.
Synonyms
group, gang, troop, troupe, party, company, band, body, crowd, pack, army, herd, flock, bevy, drove, horde, galaxy, assemblage, gathering;
knot, cluster
informal bunch, gaggle, posse, crew
Origin
Middle English: from Old French covee, feminine past participle of cover, from Latin cubare 'lie down'.
Rhymes
- prognosticative
- prognosticator
- prognosticatory
- progradation
- prograde
- program
- programatical
- programatist
- program boy
- program builder
- program-building
- program card
- cyclecar
- cycle clip
- cycledom
- cycle ergometer
- cycle helmet
- cycle lane
- cycle-man
- cycle of erosion
- cycle path
- cycler
- cycle rickshaw
- cyclery
- cycle scout