Grouse
/ɡraʊs/noun
A stocky game bird of the pheasant family, or to complain grumpily.
Did you know?The bird name and the verb meaning “to complain” are unrelated: the bird comes from French and possibly Celtic roots, while the complaining sense appears in English slang much later, as if the word split into two separate lives.
Etymological Timeline
Late 14th Century
Middle English
grouse
“a game bird, especially a ptarmigan or similar bird”
Old French
Old French
grousse / grouz
“a grouse or similar game bird”
Gaulish / Celtic
Celtic
*grus-
“a bird name of uncertain exact species, likely the source behind the French form”
19th Century
English
grouse
“to complain or grumble, especially in Australian and British slang”
Modern English
English
grouse
“a grouse bird; to complain grumpily”