popinjay
Meanings
Plural: popinjays
Noun
- a vain and talkative person (chatters like a parrot)
- an archaic term for a parrot
- A parrot.
- A decorative image of a parrot on a tapestry, cloth etc.
- A vain, gaudy person; someone who is shallow or superficial.
- A target to shoot at, typically stuffed with feathers or plumage.
- The green woodpecker, Picus viridis.
Origin / Etymology
From Middle English popinjay, popyngeay, popingay, popejay, from Anglo-Norman papegai, papejoie et al., (northern) Old French papejai (“parrot”), probably from Old Occitan papagay (compare Occitan papagai, Catalan papagai), ultimately from Arabic بَبْغَاء (babḡāʔ, “parrot”), of imitative origin.
Synonyms
barbermonger, beau, blade, blood, buck, carpet knight, cockscomb, dandy, dike, dood, dude, dudelet, exquisite, fashionable, fast man, fine gentleman, fop, foretop, fribble, gallant, go, jack-a-dandy, Jemmy-Jessamy, jetter, macaroni, masher, metrosexual, mignon, peacock, petit maître, popinjay, pretty boy, prig, puss-gentleman, smart, spark, spiff, swell, tippy, toff
Scrabble Score: 22
popinjay is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL wordpopinjay is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
popinjay is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary