tu-whit
Definition
Interjection/Noun:
- An imitation of the call of an owl: "tu-whit" is a word that represents the characteristic hooting sound made by an owl, often used in literature or as an onomatopoeic expression.
Verb (rare, intransitive):
- To make an owl-like hooting sound: "tu-whit" can be used as a verb meaning to cry or hoot like an owl.
Usage Examples
Interjection:
- From the dark forest came a soft "tu-whit" in the night. (The sound of an owl hooting.)
- The children imitated the owl by calling out "tu-whit, tu-whoo!" (A playful representation of an owl's call.)
Verb:
- The owl tu-whitted from the old oak tree. (The owl made its characteristic hooting sound.)
Advanced Usage
- "tu-whit, tu-whoo": A common extended form of the owl's call, often used in poetry or nursery rhymes.
- The line from Shakespeare's "Love's Labour's Lost" reads: "Then nightly sings the staring owl, 'Tu-whit, tu-whoo'." (A famous literary reference.)
Variants and Related Words
- Tu-whoo (n): Another variant of the owl's call, often paired with "tu-whit."
- The owl answered with a deep "tu-whoo" after the first "tu-whit." (A different part of the owl's hooting sequence.)
Synonyms
- Hoot: a similar sound made by an owl.
- The hoot of the owl was heard across the field. (A general term for an owl's call.)
Related Idioms
- Not a tu-whit: an idiomatic expression meaning "not a single sound" or "nothing at all," though this is very rare and mostly poetic.
- He listened but heard not a tu-whit from the silent woods. (He heard no owl calls or any other sound.)