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coop

(kp)

1. A small enclosure or cage, as for poultry or small animals.

2. A cramped or uncomfortably confined space.

3. Slang A jail or prison.

tr.v. cooped, coop·ing, coops

1. To confine or keep (poultry, for example) in a coop.

2. To confine in a small or cramped space. Often used with up: was cooped up in the cabin during the storm.

Idiom:

fly (or blow)the coop

To make a getaway; escape.

[Middle English coupe, possibly from Middle Dutch kūpe, basket, tub, from Germanic *kūpōn, possibly from Latin cūpa, cask; see CUPOLA.]

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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