1 kook | Definition of kook

kook

noun
\ ˈkük How to pronounce kook (audio) \

Definition of kook

: one whose ideas or actions are eccentric, fantastic, or insane : screwball

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of kook in a Sentence

a bunch of kooks dressed up in weird costumes if you insist on painting your house bright orange, everyone will assume you are a kook

Recent Examples on the Web

The threat of being written off as a kook can loom large for researchers, especially young ones. Diane Peters, Quartz, "The scientists searching for alien life aren’t very popular in science," 15 July 2019 At a stroke, anyone advocating actually leaving the European Union—hitherto known as a Leave voter—was an intransigent kook from the reactionary fringe. Lionel Shriver, Harper's magazine, "No Exit," 10 Apr. 2019 Sunday in Chicago, Mr. Sanders implied that people no longer view him as a Marxist kook. James Freeman, WSJ, "Will Democratic Primary Voters Tolerate a Liberal?," 4 Mar. 2019 The media has treated the notion that Russia has personally compromised the president of the United States as something close to a kook theory. Jonathan Chait, Daily Intelligencer, "Will Trump Be Meeting With His Counterpart — Or His Handler?," 8 July 2018 Others were kooks, and some were dangerous scoundrels—or some combination thereof. Roy Berendsohn, Popular Mechanics, "The Hobo Hieroglyphs: Their Secret Symbols, Explained," 21 Nov. 2018 At the time, of course, when this came out in 1994, I was said to be like a conspiracy kook to think that someone would be trying to gentrify the Bay Area, much less Oakland. Eric Johnson, Recode, "‘Sorry to Bother You’ director Boots Riley suspects social media platforms are hiding politics they don’t like," 8 Oct. 2018 His chosen one — the kook — was brought to life by Lauren Lovette, in a debut that unleashed her character’s free spirit with a glittering, fluid command of the choreography’s quirky twists and turns. Gia Kourlas, New York Times, "At New York City Ballet, Hits, Misses and Daring Dancers," 6 Mar. 2018 The action involves three muses — a chain-smoking temptress, an overheated diva and a fanciful kook — who each capture the attention of our hero. Gia Kourlas, New York Times, "At New York City Ballet, Hits, Misses and Daring Dancers," 6 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'kook.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

See More

First Known Use of kook

1960, in the meaning defined above

History and Etymology for kook

by shortening & alteration from cuckoo

Keep scrolling for more

Keep scrolling for more

More Definitions for kook

kook

noun

English Language Learners Definition of kook

informal : a person whose ideas or actions are very strange or foolish

kook

noun
\ ˈkük How to pronounce kook (audio) \

Kids Definition of kook

: a person who acts in a strange or insane way

Other Words from kook

kooky \ ˈkü-​kÄ“ \ adjective

More from Merriam-Webster on kook

Rhyming Dictionary: Words that rhyme with kook

Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for kook

Nglish: Translation of kook for Spanish Speakers