dodoism








noun, plural do·dos, do·does.

  1. any of several clumsy, flightless, extinct birds of the genera Raphus and Pezophaps, related to pigeons but about the size of a turkey, formerly inhabiting the islands of Mauritius, Réunion, and Rodriguez.
  2. Slang. a dull-witted, slow-reacting person.
  3. a person with old-fashioned, conservative, or outmoded ideas.
  4. a thing that is outmoded or obsolete.

noun plural dodos or dodoes

  1. any flightless bird, esp Raphus cucullatus, of the recently extinct family Raphidae of Mauritius and adjacent islands: order Columbiformes (pigeons, etc). They had a hooked bill, short stout legs, and greyish plumageSee also ratite
  2. informal an intensely conservative or reactionary person who is unaware of changing fashions, ideas, etc
  3. (as) dead as a dodo (of a person or thing) irretrievably defunct or out of date
n.

1620s, from Portuguese doudo “fool, simpleton,” an insult applied by Portuguese sailors to the awkward bird (Didus ineptus) they found on Mauritius island. The last record of a living one is from 1681. Applied in English to stupid persons since 1886.

see under dead as a doornail.

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