capon

[ key-pon, -puhn ]

noun

1. a cockerel castrated to improve the flesh for use as food.

capon

/ ˈkeɪpən /

noun

1. a castrated cock fowl fattened for eating

Word History and Origins

Origin of capon¹

First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English capun, from Latin capōn- (stem of capō ) “castrated cock”; akin to Greek kóptein “to cut,” Old Church Slavonic skopiti “to castrate”

Word History and Origins

Origin of capon¹

Old English capun, from Latin cāpō capon; related to Greek koptein to cut off

Example Sentences

“I would not have gone to a factory to work a 35-hour week even if I worked double that with my chicken and capons.”

From New York Times

For her 117th birthday, she ate foie gras, roasted capon, cheese and a dessert similar to a baked alaska.

From New York Times

From the Renaissance up to the late nineteenth century, one finds many cookbooks that suggest covering boiled meat, especially poultry such as duck or capon, with macaroni or filled pasta.

From Salon

It may have started with the cockentrice, a monstrosity made by stitching together the head and upper torso of a pig with a capon, found on feast menus from the fifteenth century.

From Salon

The menu for her birthday feast included a starter of foie gras, followed by capon with fragrant mushrooms and wrapping up with baked Alaska, the nun’s favorite dessert.

From Washington Times

Related Words

• chicken
• goose
• hen
• pheasant