n. & adj.
n. any bird of the family Cuculidae, esp. Cuculus canorus, having a characteristic cry, and depositing its eggs in the nests of small birds.
predic.adj. sl. crazy, foolish. cuckoo clock a clock that strikes the hour with a sound like a cuckoo's call, usu. with the emergence on each note of a mechanical cuckoo. cuckoo flower 1 a meadow plant, Cardamine pratensis, with pale lilac flowers. 2 = ragged robin. cuckoo in the nest an unwelcome intruder. cuckoo-pint a wild arum, Arum maculatum, with arrow-shaped leaves and scarlet berries: also called lords and ladies (see LORD). cuckoo-spit froth exuded by larvae of insects of the family Cercopidae on leaves, stems, etc.
[ ME f. OF cucu, imit. ]