covey
Americannoun
plural
coveys-
a brood or small flock of partridges or similar birds.
-
a group, set, or company.
noun
-
a small flock of grouse or partridge
-
a small group, as of people
Etymology
Origin of covey
First recorded in 1400–50; Middle English, variant of covee, from Anglo-French, Old French, noun use of feminine of past participle of cover “to hatch,” from Latin cubāre “to lie down”; couvade, concubine
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
They had so many kids following along behind them they looked like a covey of quails.
From Literature
There was so much bobbing and grinning and nodding up and down, they looked like a covey of quails.
From Literature
Goodbye as well to a covey of quarterbacks, several of whom didn’t impress despite getting ample opportunities with most starters sitting out the entire preseason.
From Los Angeles Times
The book resonates with a rustic knowingness that coveys the intricacies and suspicions of tightly bound lives.
From Los Angeles Times
In the fall and winter, quail typically live in flocks, or coveys, with about a dozen birds.
From Washington Post
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
