Definitions
American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
- n. A family or small flock of birds, especially partridge or quail. See Synonyms at flock1.
- n. A small group, as of persons.
Century Dictionary and Cyclopedia
- n. In hunting, specifically, a flock of partridges; hence, in general use, a flock of any similar birds.
- n. A company; a party; a bevy.
- n. Synonyms Pack, Brood, etc. See flock.
- n. Same as cove.
Wiktionary
- n. A group of 8-12 (or more) quail. See gaggle, host, flock.
- n. A brood of partridges, grouse, etc.
- n. A party or group (of persons or things).
- n. A man.
GNU Webster's 1913
- n. A brood or hatch of birds; an old bird with her brood of young; hence, a small flock or number of birds together; -- said of game.
- n. A company; a bevy.
- v. To brood; to incubate.
- n. A pantry.
WordNet 3.0
- n. a small flock of grouse or partridge
- n. a small collection of people
Etymologies
- Middle English, from Old French covee, brood, from feminine past participle of cover, to incubate, from Latin cubāre, to lie down.
Examples
“I suppose this is what they call a covey in these parts.”
“The idea of course being that one could rack out the slug and rack in shot when a covey is encountered.”
“The covey was a large one, composed of two or three broods of young prairie fowl, and I struck on the exact place, a slight hollow filled with low brush and tall grass, where they were lying.”
“The former grows up and during the fall and winter forms one of the covey which is content to wander a mile or two, here and there, in search of good feeding grounds.”
“Anyone who has ever winged a bird in an area holding other birds knows that a dog can be tracking a wounded bird and then come along another covey.”
“One morning he pointed the only covey of quail I saw in Iowa all season.”
“I got a strange feeling and looked behind me and there he was a real nice 8 point buck no more than twenty yards away staring at me like a bird dog pointing a covey of quail.”
“John Reiff Williams: The Edge of Collapse | Williams' work presents us with photographic observations of humanity that covey a visceral emotional resonance to the viewer.”
The Huffington Post: Bill Bush: Pasadena to Santa Barbara: This Artweek.LA (February 6, 2012)
“Yea I've got at least 20 covey of 50 or more birds, that I know of.”
i have benn thinking about getting a neww dog. I manage about 10000 acres of hunting land.
“Ben Smilowitz, DAP's Executive Director, said: The fact that nearly half of the donated dollars still sit in the bank accounts of relief and aid groups does not match the urgency of their own fundraising and marketing efforts and donors' intentions, nor does it covey the urgency of the situation on the ground.”
Lists
These user-created lists contain the word ‘covey’.
-
A Time of Gifts
lambent, gonfalon, ait, eyrie, haberdashery, belfry, capstan, spinney, barbican, hobnail, wharf, waterlogged and 64 more...
yarb Citation on arroyo. Aug 26, 2008