loon
noun/luːn/
/luːn/
- a large North American bird that eats fish and makes a noise like a laughTopics Birdsc2
- (also loony)(informal, offensive) an offensive word for a person who has strange ideas or who behaves in a strange way
Word Originsense 2 late 19th cent.: from loon (referring to the bird's actions when escaping from danger), perhaps influenced by loony.sense 1 mid 17th cent.: probably by alteration of Shetland dialect loom, denoting especially a guillemot or a diver, from Old Norse.
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loon