crow 1
/kroh/ , n.
1. any of several large oscine birds of the genus Corvus, of the family Corvidae, having a long, stout bill, lustrous black plumage, and a wedge-shaped tail, as the common C. brachyrhynchos, of North America.
2. any of several other birds of the family Corvidae.
3. any of various similar birds of other families.
4. ( cap. ) Astron. the constellation Corvus.
5. crowbar (def. 1).
6. as the crow flies , in a straight line; by the most direct route: The next town is thirty miles from here, as the crow flies.
7. eat crow , Informal. to be forced to admit to having made a mistake, as by retracting an emphatic statement; suffer humiliation: His prediction was completely wrong, and he had to eat crow.
8. have a crow to pick or pluck with someone , Midland and Southern U.S. to have a reason to disagree or argue with someone.
[ bef. 900; ME crowe, OE crawe, crawa; c. OHG krawa; akin to D kraai, G Krähe ]
crow 2
— crower , n. — crowingly , adv.
/kroh/ , v. , crowed or, for 1, ( esp. Brit. ), crew; crowed; crowing; n.
v.i.
1. to utter the characteristic cry of a rooster.
2. to gloat, boast, or exult (often fol. by over ).
3. to utter an inarticulate cry of pleasure, as an infant does.
n.
4. the characteristic cry of a rooster.
5. an inarticulate cry of pleasure.
[ bef. 1000; ME crowen, OE crawan; c. D kraaien, G krähen; see CROW 1 ]
Syn. 2. vaunt, brag.