# pigeon

Pronunciation: say "PIJ-in" /ˈpɪ.dʒɪn/

## Noun

1. Any of several plump, short-necked birds of the family Columbidae, including the common rock dove of cities.
   - Simple: A common gray bird with a small head, often seen around towns and city parks.
   - _A pigeon strutted across the plaza, bobbing its head with each step._
   - _Wild pigeons nest on the ledges of the tall buildings downtown._
2. The flesh of the pigeon, prepared and eaten as food.
   - Simple: Meat from the pigeon, cooked and served as food.
   - _The restaurant serves roast pigeon with a dark cherry sauce and crisp potatoes._
   - _The recipe calls for pigeon braised in red wine and herbs._
3. A person who is the target or victim of a confidence trick or swindle. *(colloquial, Canada, US)*
   - Simple: Someone who is fooled and cheated by a clever trickster.
   - _The swindlers spotted their pigeon the moment he walked into the casino._
   - _Every grifter at the fair was looking for a pigeon with deep pockets._

## Noun

4. A matter that is one's own concern or responsibility. *(archaic, UK)*
   - Simple: Something that is your concern or your job to deal with.

## Other meanings

- (verb) To cheat or swindle a person by means of a confidence game.
- (noun) A person who favors peace, appeasement, or staying out of conflict; a dove.
- (noun) A person regarded as weak, feeble, or of no use.
- (noun) A person hired to carry film footage out of a region where travel or transport is difficult.

## Origin

**Meanings 1–3** — English inherited "pigeon" from Middle English "pygeoun", borrowed from Old French "pyjon" and going back to Late Latin "pīpiōnem" ("chirping bird"), from Latin "pīpiāre" ("to chirp"), a word of imitative origin. It partly displaced the native English word "dove".
**Meaning 4** — This sense goes back to "pidgin" English, whose name reflects how speakers of Chinese Pidgin English said "business" when trading in the Far East.

Source: DictionaryAI, https://dictionaryai.com/define/pigeon (written from Wiktionary data, CC BY-SA 4.0: https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-sa/4.0/).