1
as in goose
a person who lacks good sense or judgment
only a turkey would think it's a good idea to go for a jog when the weather drops below zero
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in idiot
a stupid person
you turkey, that wasn't my boyfriend—it was my brother!
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in disaster
something that has failed
his business venture ended up being a turkey, and he lost quite a bit of money on it
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of turkey
That’s traditionally been a day for fans and casual observers to turn on a football game when not eating turkey.
—
Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 20 May 2025
Restaurateur Tasha Cyril is sometimes frustrated by the popularity of the turkey wings at her scene-centric Buckhead bar and lounge.
—Mike Jordan, Bon Appetit Magazine, 2 May 2025
As a cheeky bid for 12-point votes (the highest any nation can give to another), it was performed by the puppet and accompanied by high-energy dancers meant to look like Irish turkeys.
—Nick Allen, Vulture, 13 May 2025
The marinated turkey or chicken is stuffed into a French roll intended to soak up the recipe’s recaudo or marinade, along with slices of tomato, cucumber, radishes and sprigs of watercress.
—Daniel Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for turkey
Pete Grathoff, Kansas City Star, 20 May 2025
Restaurateur Tasha Cyril is sometimes frustrated by the popularity of the turkey wings at her scene-centric Buckhead bar and lounge.
—Mike Jordan, Bon Appetit Magazine, 2 May 2025
As a cheeky bid for 12-point votes (the highest any nation can give to another), it was performed by the puppet and accompanied by high-energy dancers meant to look like Irish turkeys.
—Nick Allen, Vulture, 13 May 2025
The marinated turkey or chicken is stuffed into a French roll intended to soak up the recipe’s recaudo or marinade, along with slices of tomato, cucumber, radishes and sprigs of watercress.
—Daniel Hernandez, Los Angeles Times, 11 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for turkey
Recent Examples of Synonyms for turkey
Noun
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To survive the harsh environment, Roz bonds with the island’s animals and cares for an orphaned baby goose.—
Samantha Bergeson,
IndieWire,
12 May 2025
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And here a duck has made her nest Six brown eggs in a bed of twigs, More artful than any window display, More precious than a golden egg Laid by a golden goose.—
contributing Monitor poets,
Christian Science Monitor,
23 Apr. 2025
Noun
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The first episode features the recreation by actors of actual communication or lack of communication between the pilot and his junior officer that led to these disasters.—
Stephen Rodrick,
Rolling Stone,
29 May 2025
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Though the Sixers remained a disaster without Embiid on the floor over those past two seasons, Maxey hit that 26-points-per-game mark and arrived as a star in this league.—
Jared Weiss,
New York Times,
29 May 2025
Noun
-
And when strategy is rolled out, is space built in for reflection, revision and learning, or is deviation still seen as failure?—
Benjamin Laker,
Forbes.com,
25 May 2025
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Building failures, from malfunctioning boilers and coolers to plumbing and roof leaks, are increasingly occurring, some of them during high-profile medical and tech conventions, the most recent just a couple of months ago.—
Lori Weisberg,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
25 May 2025
Noun
-
These could be people that play Devil’s advocate or, like Shakespeare’s fools, challenge ideas and thinking.—
George Bradt,
Forbes.com,
26 May 2025
-
Flecks of mica and pyrite and who knows what, but only fools and greenhorns mistake it for gold.—
John Archibald,
Southern Living,
25 May 2025
Noun
-
Sometimes too stupid is actually smartski but sometimes is just stupid stupid.—
Caroline Downey,
National Review,
27 Mar. 2025
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An underrated gem — not enough people have seen this top-tier season — Squirrels Trip has some fabulous vocals, very funny lyrics, a heavy dose of stupid, and an engaging story.—
Barry Levitt,
Vulture,
21 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Each year, fire safety officials warn of the dangers of fireworks and stage demonstrations of dummies that catch fire and watermelons that explode.—
Linda Trischitta,
Sun-Sentinel.com,
10 July 2017
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At NASA Langley's Landing and Impact Research Facility, ten crash test dummies were buckled into a section of airplane fuselage and dropped from the sky.—
Chris Clarke,
Popular Mechanics,
6 July 2017
Noun
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In January, state media reported that intelligence officials in Syria’s post-Assad government thwarted a plan by IS to set off a bomb at a Shiite Muslim shrine south of Damascus.—
Bassem Mroue,
Los Angeles Times,
30 May 2025
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In the ensuing battles, Israeli forces have mercilessly pounded Gaza with bombs that have destroyed much of the region’s infrastructure, killing more than 53,000, according to Palestinian health officials.—
Gil Kaufman,
Billboard,
30 May 2025
Noun
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The University of San Diego and San Diego State both lost Thursday to drop into the losers’ brackets of their respective double-elimination conference baseball tournaments.—
Bill Center,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
23 May 2025
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That volatility has created stark winners and losers.—
MacKenzie Sigalos,
CNBC,
22 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Turkey.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/turkey. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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