/kok"euh tooh', kok'euh tooh"/ , n. , pl. cockatoos .
1. any of numerous large, noisy, crested parrots of the genera Cacatua, Callocephalon, Calyptorhynchus, etc., of the Australasian region, having chiefly white plumage tinged with yellow, pink, or red: popular as a pet.
2. Australian.
a. a person who owns and works a small farm or ranch.
b. Slang. a lookout posted by criminals or the operators of illegal gambling games.
[ 1610-20; kaketoe kakatua, perh. etymologizing alter. of Central Moluccan jaka any psittacine bird, by assoc. with Malay kakak sibling, kakak tua older sibling); sp. copies COCK 1 ]