tu-whit tu-whooint.n.
/tᵿˌwɪt tᵿˈwuː/, U.S. /tuˌ(h)wɪt tuˈ(h)wu/ A. int.
Representing the characteristic call or hoot of an owl; (sometimes) spec. representing the short, shrill contact call of the female tawny owl (see tu-whit int.) followed by the hooting response of the male (see tu-whoo int.).
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Strigiformes or owl > [interjection] > cry of owl
tu-whoo1579
whoo1581
tu-whit1591
tu-whit tu-whoo1594
woo-hoo1771
boo hoo1799
1594 J. Lyly Mother Bombie iii. iv. (song) To whit to whoo, the Owle does cry.
1598 W. Shakespeare Love's Labour's Lost v. ii. 903 Then nightly singes the staring Owle Tu-whit to-who. A merrie note. View more context for this quotation
1607 W. N. Barley-breake sig. B1 Too whit, too who, cries out the broad-fac'd Owle.
1630 M. Drayton Muses Elizium x. 113 The purblind Owle which heareth all this doo, T'expresse her gladnesse, cryes Too whit too whoo.
1796 Whim for Day 39 Jolly we'll be, till the owl flies away. Ti whit! ti whoo!
1816 S. T. Coleridge Christabel i. 3 The owls have awaken'd the crowing cock; Tu—whit!—— Tu—whoo!
1867 Our Boys & Girls 23 Mar. 138/2 Woe woe is me! Tu-whit, to-whoo!
1937 Manch. Guardian 16 May 22/1 ‘Too-whit-too-whoo!’ came from a stunted oak not fifteen yards away.
1995 Atlanta Jrnl. & Constit. (Nexis) 19 Aug. 20 l ‘Tu-whit, tu-whoo,’ said Mother Owl. ‘Have you ever heard anything like that? That hen is disgraceful.’
B. n.
1. humorous and in children's speech. (A name for) an owl. rare.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Strigiformes or owl > [noun]
owleOE
howlec1430
mouser1440
howletc1450
nightbirdc1450
owlet1542
night owl1581
jenny-howlet1600
tu-whit tu-whoo1604
Welsh ambassador1608
mouse-catcher1611
Welsh falconera1640
hooter1673
hobhouchin1682
flying-cat1699
houchin1746
jumbie bird1827
1604 ‘W. Terilo’ Piece of Friar Bacons Prophesie sig. B3v Then Cocke a doodle doo, The houre's diuided right: And olde to whit to whoo Did watch the winter night.
1869 ‘Gwynfryn’ Friends in Fur & Feathers 30 Old Tu-whit Tu-whoo, in the church tower, swallows his mice whole.
2014 P. Smith Owl & Earl xxiii. 188 I reckon that should carry a penalty, 'ittin' a twit twoo.
2. The characteristic call or hoot of an owl; (sometimes) spec. the short, shrill contact call of the female tawny owl (see tu-whit n.) followed by the hooting response of the male (see tu-whoo n.).In quot. 1862 (with reference to quot. 1598 at sense A.): the written representation of such a call.
ΘΚΠ
the world > animals > birds > order Strigiformes or owl > [noun] > sound made by
whoop1582
tu-whit tu-whoo1655
woo-hoo1656
hoot1791
tu-whoo1830
hooting1837
tu-whooing1838
owl-hoot1850
1655 in J. Mennes & J. Smith Musarum Deliciæ 16 But Mopsa's shrill; To whit to whoo Descending through her hollow Nose, Did that distemper soon compose.
1830 Ld. Tennyson Poems 47 With a lengthened loud halloo, Tuwhoo, tuwhit, tuwhit, tuwhoo-o-o.
1862 G. Borrow Wild Wales liii What resemblance does Shakespear's to-whit-to-whoo bear to the cry of the owl? none whatever.
1873 Zoologist 8 3409 The neighbourhood is resonant with..the ‘tu-whit, tu-whoo’ of the owl.
1988 Times 5 Dec. 16/3 The commonly heard ‘tu-whit tu-whoo’ is in fact usually a joint performance, the female making the sharp cry and the male hooting in reply.
2000 Manch. Evening News (Nexis) 23 Dec. 3 Keep your ears open for..the too-whit too-whoo of the tawny owl.
This entry has been updated (OED Third Edition, June 2019; most recently modified version published online March 2022).
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int.n.1594