mopoke

(ˈməʊˌpəʊk)

1. (Animals) Also called (NZ): ruru a small spotted owl, Ninox novaeseelandiae, of Australia and New Zealand. In Australia the tawny frogmouth, Podargus strigoides, is very often wrongly identified as the mopoke

2. slang Austral and NZ a slow or lugubrious person

Also called (NZ): morepork

[C19: imitative of the bird's cry]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

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References in periodicals archive ?

Mopoke: an owl of the genus Ninox, found in Australia and New

The Moonlit Creek

The edition of Saturday, 27 June 1925, edited by 'Mopoke', includes a column of local events, puzzles, letters and short original serial fiction and poetry (Murray Pioneer, 1925).