Learn Romanian › curcan
curcan
turkey (the bird) /kurˈkan/
noun#4344 most common
Also: cop, policeman (derogatory slang)
Example sentences
Curcanul este mare.
The turkey is big.
De sărbători mâncăm curcan.
On holidays we eat turkey.
Bunica crește curcani în curtea casei.
Grandma raises turkeys in the yard of the house.
Fugi, că vine curcanul!
Run, the cop is coming!
Curcanul se umflă în pene ori de câte ori se apropie o curcă.
The turkey puffs up its feathers whenever a hen turkey comes near.
În argoul interlop, curcanul desemnează polițistul, printr-o comparație ironică cu mersul țanțoș al păsării.
In criminal slang, 'curcan' refers to a policeman, through an ironic comparison with the bird's strutting walk.
Declension
| Case | Singular | Plural |
|---|---|---|
| Nominative | curcan | curcani |
| Genitive | curcanului | curcanilor |
| Accusative | curcan | curcani |
| Vocative | curcanule | curcanilor |
Word family
curcăhen turkey
a curcănito gobble (of a turkey)
curcănescof or relating to turkeys
curcănelyoung turkey (diminutive)
Etymology
The origin of "curcan" is not settled. Romanian dictionaries treat it as likely onomatopoeic, echoing the gobbling sound the bird makes, and link it to the related verb "a curcăni" (to gobble). The slang sense meaning "policeman" is a later, informal extension, built on the image of the bird's puffed-up, strutting walk.
Learn Romanian the way that sticks.
Every word here is a full Polylex card with native audio and spaced repetition, so 4,027 words actually move into long-term memory.
Start free
Every word here is a full Polylex card with native audio and spaced repetition, so 4,027 words actually move into long-term memory.
Start free