parrots

1. 1
   noun

   Plural of parrot.

   Several parrots nested in the hollow trunks along the river.

   The pet store kept its parrots in a wide, sunlit enclosure.

   Note

   One spelling does two jobs here: the noun plural and the verb's present-tense form. As a plural it covers more than birds. Parrots can be people who echo other people's words and ideas, a figurative use. In archaic English the word named puffins, in obsolete use it meant channel coal, and in slang it refers to transponders. Context, not form, tells them apart.

2. 2
   verb

   Third-person singular simple present indicative of parrot.

   The columnist merely parrots the talking points handed to him by the party.

   Whenever the topic comes up, she parrots her professor's conclusions word for word.

   Note

   The verb always takes an object: someone parrots a line, a slogan or a teacher's conclusions, and never simply parrots. This is the present form used after he, she, it or a singular noun, and it is spelled like the plural noun. Because the verb means repeating without understanding, saying that someone parrots an argument criticizes them. It is not a neutral report.

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