Pouter

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A breed of domestic pigeon known for its inflated crop used in display ; someone who pushes out their lips in a sulking or displeased expression
2. A variety of pigeon distinguished by its swollen chest often used in fancy breeding ; an individual who shows displeasure by protruding the lips
3. A domesticated pigeon breed characterized by an enlarged throat pouch ; a person expressing dissatisfaction by thrusting forward the lips

Etymology: The pouter is named for its behaviour rather than its origin: its breeders noticed that the birds puff their crops out like a sulking face. The word is simply "pout" with the agent suffix "-er", meaning one that pouts. The pigeon was given the name because of its bulging, inflated crop, which it swells up and displays. The suffix has a longer history than the verb it attaches to. The "-er" ending descends from Latin "-arius", a suffix that marked a person or thing connected with something, and it came into English through Old English "-ere", which was borrowed from Latin via Proto-Germanic. Over the centuries it became one of English's most productive ways of forming nouns from verbs, so "pouter" follows the same pattern as "baker" or "runner".

Synonyms: sullen, moody, pouty

Antonyms: cheerful, joyful