Merriam-Webster's Word Central

November 26, 2009

poultry (noun): \POHL-tree\
What does it mean?: : domesticated birds kept for eggs or meat
How do you use it?: "This has to be a nerve-wracking time of year for poultry," said Erin, "because so many people want turkey and chicken on their menu."
Are you a word wiz?: Don't be a chicken! Take a wild guess at answering this question: Where did our English word "poultry" come from?

A. an old German word meaning "tasty dish"

B. an early French word meaning "a young chicken"

C. an ancient Greek word meaning "covered with feathers"

D. an obsolete Spanish word meaning "raised on a farm"

We owe our English word "poultry" to "poulet," a word used in early forms of French to mean "a very young chicken or fowl." That early French word developed from the even older noun "poul," which meant "a male chicken." Like many other words in both English and French, "poul" ultimately traces to a Latin word, in this case "pullus," which meant "the young of a chicken or animal." So as you can see, "poultry" is no spring chicken; it has been part of English since at least the 14th century.

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