"wooden spoon" meaning in English

See wooden spoon in All languages combined, or Wiktionary

Noun

IPA: /ˈwʊdən spuːn/ Audio: En-au-wooden spoon.ogg Forms: wooden spoons [plural]
Head templates: {{en-noun}} wooden spoon (plural wooden spoons)
  1. A spoon made from wood, commonly used in food preparation. Translations (spoon made from wood): 木羹 (english: muk⁶ gang¹) (Chinese Cantonese), 木勺 (mùsháo) (Chinese Mandarin), vařečka [feminine] (Czech), træske [common-gender] (Danish), houten lepel [masculine] (Dutch), pollepel (Dutch), kapusta (Finnish), puukauha (Finnish), cuillère en bois [feminine] (French), Kochlöffel [masculine] (German), Holzlöffel [masculine] (German), fakanál (Hungarian), cucchiaio di legno [masculine] (Italian), mestolo di legno [masculine] (Italian), 杓文字 (shamoji) (alt: しゃもじ) (Japanese), koko rākau (Maori), tchulyi en bouais [feminine] (Norman), tresleiv [feminine, masculine] (Norwegian Bokmål), tresleiv [feminine] (Norwegian Nynorsk), drewniana łyżka [feminine] (Polish), kopyść [feminine] (Polish), colher de pau [feminine] (Portuguese), деревя́нная ло́жка (derevjánnaja lóžka) (note: for eating, Russian musical instrument or souvenir) [feminine] (Russian), меси́лка (mesílka) [feminine] (Russian), меша́лка (mešálka) [feminine] (Russian), весёлка (vesjólka) (note: for cooking) [feminine] (Russian), spàin-fhiodha [feminine] (Scottish Gaelic), kuhača [feminine] (Serbo-Croatian), варјача [Cyrillic, feminine] (Serbo-Croatian), мешаја [Cyrillic, feminine] (Serbo-Croatian), мешајица [Cyrillic, feminine] (Serbo-Croatian), varjača [Roman, feminine] (Serbo-Croatian), mešaja [Roman, feminine] (Serbo-Croatian), mešejica [Roman, feminine] (Serbo-Croatian), varjača [feminine] (Slovene), cuchara de madera [feminine] (Spanish), träslev (note: the type typically used in cooking) [common-gender] (Swedish), träsked (english: generically) [common-gender] (Swedish), копи́стка (kopýstka) [feminine] (Ukrainian), spoen (West Frisian)
    Sense id: en-wooden_spoon-en-noun-fZ2BwJ38 Disambiguation of 'spoon made from wood': 88 2 2 8
  2. (idiomatic) An ironic prize for finishing last in a competition. Tags: idiomatic Categories (topical): People Translations (prize for coming last in a competition): rode lantaarn (Dutch), lohdutuspalkinto (Finnish), cuillère en bois [feminine] (French), rote Laterne [feminine] (German), maglia nera [feminine] (Italian), cuchara de madera (Spanish), jumbopris [neuter] (Swedish)
    Sense id: en-wooden_spoon-en-noun-SVnQTLgz Disambiguation of People: 1 39 43 18 Disambiguation of 'prize for coming last in a competition': 4 79 9 8
  3. (Cambridge University slang, dated) The last junior optime who takes a university degree. Tags: dated Categories (topical): Universities, People
    Sense id: en-wooden_spoon-en-noun-YC6EEMmc Disambiguation of People: 1 39 43 18
  4. (US, university slang, dated) The lowest appointee of the junior year; sometimes, one especially popular in his class, without reference to scholarship. Formerly, it was a custom for classmates to present to this person a wooden spoon with formal ceremonies. Tags: US, dated Categories (topical): Universities, Kitchenware, People
    Sense id: en-wooden_spoon-en-noun-C~D6Jfwe Disambiguation of Kitchenware: 16 6 19 58 Disambiguation of People: 1 39 43 18 Categories (other): American English, English entries with incorrect language header, Entries with translation boxes, Pages with 1 entry, Pages with entries, Terms with Cantonese translations, Terms with Czech translations, Terms with Danish translations, Terms with Dutch translations, Terms with Finnish translations, Terms with French translations, Terms with German translations, Terms with Hungarian translations, Terms with Italian translations, Terms with Japanese translations, Terms with Mandarin translations, Terms with Maori translations, Terms with Norman translations, Terms with Norwegian Bokmål translations, Terms with Norwegian Nynorsk translations, Terms with Polish translations, Terms with Portuguese translations, Terms with Russian translations, Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations, Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations, Terms with Slovene translations, Terms with Spanish translations, Terms with Swedish translations, Terms with Ukrainian translations, Terms with West Frisian translations Disambiguation of English entries with incorrect language header: 8 8 36 48 Disambiguation of Entries with translation boxes: 8 8 21 62 Disambiguation of Pages with 1 entry: 12 11 22 55 Disambiguation of Pages with entries: 5 5 33 57 Disambiguation of Terms with Cantonese translations: 8 8 20 63 Disambiguation of Terms with Czech translations: 6 13 25 57 Disambiguation of Terms with Danish translations: 5 7 17 72 Disambiguation of Terms with Dutch translations: 11 10 23 56 Disambiguation of Terms with Finnish translations: 8 11 21 60 Disambiguation of Terms with French translations: 16 10 21 54 Disambiguation of Terms with German translations: 10 10 23 57 Disambiguation of Terms with Hungarian translations: 8 9 21 62 Disambiguation of Terms with Italian translations: 7 7 22 64 Disambiguation of Terms with Japanese translations: 8 8 23 62 Disambiguation of Terms with Mandarin translations: 11 8 19 62 Disambiguation of Terms with Maori translations: 7 10 20 63 Disambiguation of Terms with Norman translations: 6 12 22 60 Disambiguation of Terms with Norwegian Bokmål translations: 8 12 21 58 Disambiguation of Terms with Norwegian Nynorsk translations: 3 4 19 74 Disambiguation of Terms with Polish translations: 8 14 18 59 Disambiguation of Terms with Portuguese translations: 6 8 21 65 Disambiguation of Terms with Russian translations: 8 8 23 62 Disambiguation of Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations: 7 11 20 62 Disambiguation of Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations: 6 8 21 65 Disambiguation of Terms with Slovene translations: 6 9 21 65 Disambiguation of Terms with Spanish translations: 7 6 19 67 Disambiguation of Terms with Swedish translations: 7 10 20 63 Disambiguation of Terms with Ukrainian translations: 7 11 20 61 Disambiguation of Terms with West Frisian translations: 5 8 18 69
The following are not (yet) sense-disambiguated
Derived forms: wooden spooner, wooden spoonist Related terms: booby prize, lanterne rouge

Inflected forms

{
  "derived": [
    {
      "_dis1": "45 2 2 52",
      "word": "wooden spooner"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "45 2 2 52",
      "word": "wooden spoonist"
    }
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "wooden spoons",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "wooden spoon (plural wooden spoons)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "_dis1": "45 2 2 52",
      "word": "booby prize"
    },
    {
      "_dis1": "45 2 2 52",
      "word": "lanterne rouge"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "A spoon made from wood, commonly used in food preparation."
      ],
      "id": "en-wooden_spoon-en-noun-fZ2BwJ38",
      "links": [
        [
          "spoon",
          "spoon"
        ],
        [
          "wood",
          "wood"
        ]
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "yue",
          "english": "muk⁶ gang¹",
          "lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "木羹"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "cmn",
          "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
          "roman": "mùsháo",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "木勺"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "cs",
          "lang": "Czech",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "vařečka"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "da",
          "lang": "Danish",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "træske"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "houten lepel"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "pollepel"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "kapusta"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "puukauha"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "cuillère en bois"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Kochlöffel"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "Holzlöffel"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "hu",
          "lang": "Hungarian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "fakanál"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "cucchiaio di legno"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "mestolo di legno"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "alt": "しゃもじ",
          "code": "ja",
          "lang": "Japanese",
          "roman": "shamoji",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "杓文字"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "mi",
          "lang": "Maori",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "koko rākau"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "nrf",
          "lang": "Norman",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "tchulyi en bouais"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "nb",
          "lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine",
            "masculine"
          ],
          "word": "tresleiv"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "nn",
          "lang": "Norwegian Nynorsk",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "tresleiv"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "drewniana łyżka"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "pl",
          "lang": "Polish",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "kopyść"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "pt",
          "lang": "Portuguese",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "colher de pau"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "note": "for eating, Russian musical instrument or souvenir",
          "roman": "derevjánnaja lóžka",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "деревя́нная ло́жка"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "mesílka",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "меси́лка"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "roman": "mešálka",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "меша́лка"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "ru",
          "lang": "Russian",
          "note": "for cooking",
          "roman": "vesjólka",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "весёлка"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "gd",
          "lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "spàin-fhiodha"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sh",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "kuhača"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sh",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "Cyrillic",
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "варјача"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sh",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "Cyrillic",
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "мешаја"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sh",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "Cyrillic",
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "мешајица"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sh",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "Roman",
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "varjača"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sh",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "Roman",
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "mešaja"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sh",
          "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "Roman",
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "mešejica"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sl",
          "lang": "Slovene",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "varjača"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "cuchara de madera"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "note": "the type typically used in cooking",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "träslev"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "sv",
          "english": "generically",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "common-gender"
          ],
          "word": "träsked"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "uk",
          "lang": "Ukrainian",
          "roman": "kopýstka",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "копи́стка"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "88 2 2 8",
          "code": "fy",
          "lang": "West Frisian",
          "sense": "spoon made from wood",
          "word": "spoen"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "_dis": "1 39 43 18",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "People",
          "orig": "en:People",
          "parents": [
            "Human",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1858, Charles Kent, The Derby Ministry: A Series of Cabinet Pictures, page 237:",
          "text": "Earnestly bent upon fulfilling the weighty, nay solemn, responsibilities of his office at all hazard, even at the risk of so far neglecting his parliamentary duties as to appear upon the division-list less frequently than any of his colleagues, Sir John Pakington wore the wooden spoon at the whitebait dinner, though with an air of waggery — almost as a decoration.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An ironic prize for finishing last in a competition."
      ],
      "id": "en-wooden_spoon-en-noun-SVnQTLgz",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) An ironic prize for finishing last in a competition."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ],
      "translations": [
        {
          "_dis1": "4 79 9 8",
          "code": "nl",
          "lang": "Dutch",
          "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
          "word": "rode lantaarn"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "4 79 9 8",
          "code": "fi",
          "lang": "Finnish",
          "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
          "word": "lohdutuspalkinto"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "4 79 9 8",
          "code": "fr",
          "lang": "French",
          "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "cuillère en bois"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "4 79 9 8",
          "code": "de",
          "lang": "German",
          "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "rote Laterne"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "4 79 9 8",
          "code": "it",
          "lang": "Italian",
          "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
          "tags": [
            "feminine"
          ],
          "word": "maglia nera"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "4 79 9 8",
          "code": "es",
          "lang": "Spanish",
          "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
          "word": "cuchara de madera"
        },
        {
          "_dis1": "4 79 9 8",
          "code": "sv",
          "lang": "Swedish",
          "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
          "tags": [
            "neuter"
          ],
          "word": "jumbopris"
        }
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        {
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Universities",
          "orig": "en:Universities",
          "parents": [
            "Schools",
            "Buildings",
            "Education",
            "Buildings and structures",
            "Society",
            "Architecture",
            "All topics",
            "Applied sciences",
            "Art",
            "Fundamental",
            "Sciences",
            "Culture"
          ],
          "source": "w"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "1 39 43 18",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "People",
          "orig": "en:People",
          "parents": [
            "Human",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1843, Thomas Macaulay, Sir James Mackintosh's History of the Revolution:",
          "text": "We submit that a wooden spoon of our day would not be justified in calling Galileo and Napier blockheads because they never heard of the differential calculus.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The last junior optime who takes a university degree."
      ],
      "id": "en-wooden_spoon-en-noun-YC6EEMmc",
      "links": [
        [
          "slang",
          "slang"
        ],
        [
          "junior",
          "junior"
        ],
        [
          "optime",
          "optime"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "Cambridge University slang",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(Cambridge University slang, dated) The last junior optime who takes a university degree."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated"
      ]
    },
    {
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          "name": "American English",
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          "source": "w"
        },
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          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
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          "orig": "en:Universities",
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            "Buildings",
            "Education",
            "Buildings and structures",
            "Society",
            "Architecture",
            "All topics",
            "Applied sciences",
            "Art",
            "Fundamental",
            "Sciences",
            "Culture"
          ],
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          "_dis": "8 8 36 48",
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            "Entry maintenance"
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          "_dis": "7 7 22 64",
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        {
          "_dis": "8 8 23 62",
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        {
          "_dis": "11 8 19 62",
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          "_dis": "8 12 21 58",
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "3 4 19 74",
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "8 14 18 59",
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "6 8 21 65",
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          "name": "Terms with Portuguese translations",
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "8 8 23 62",
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          "name": "Terms with Russian translations",
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "7 11 20 62",
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          "name": "Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "6 8 21 65",
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          "name": "Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations",
          "parents": [],
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        {
          "_dis": "6 9 21 65",
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          "name": "Terms with Slovene translations",
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "7 6 19 67",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Spanish translations",
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "7 10 20 63",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Swedish translations",
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        },
        {
          "_dis": "7 11 20 61",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with Ukrainian translations",
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          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "5 8 18 69",
          "kind": "other",
          "name": "Terms with West Frisian translations",
          "parents": [],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "16 6 19 58",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "Kitchenware",
          "orig": "en:Kitchenware",
          "parents": [
            "Cooking",
            "Home appliances",
            "Tools",
            "Food and drink",
            "Home",
            "Machines",
            "Technology",
            "All topics",
            "Society",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        },
        {
          "_dis": "1 39 43 18",
          "kind": "topical",
          "langcode": "en",
          "name": "People",
          "orig": "en:People",
          "parents": [
            "Human",
            "All topics",
            "Fundamental"
          ],
          "source": "w+disamb"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The lowest appointee of the junior year; sometimes, one especially popular in his class, without reference to scholarship. Formerly, it was a custom for classmates to present to this person a wooden spoon with formal ceremonies."
      ],
      "id": "en-wooden_spoon-en-noun-C~D6Jfwe",
      "links": [
        [
          "university",
          "university"
        ],
        [
          "slang",
          "slang"
        ],
        [
          "appointee",
          "appointee"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "university slang",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(US, university slang, dated) The lowest appointee of the junior year; sometimes, one especially popular in his class, without reference to scholarship. Formerly, it was a custom for classmates to present to this person a wooden spoon with formal ceremonies."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "dated"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈwʊdən spuːn/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-wooden spoon.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/ed/En-au-wooden_spoon.ogg/En-au-wooden_spoon.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/En-au-wooden_spoon.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "wooden spoon"
  ],
  "word": "wooden spoon"
}
{
  "categories": [
    "English countable nouns",
    "English entries with incorrect language header",
    "English lemmas",
    "English multiword terms",
    "English nouns",
    "English terms with IPA pronunciation",
    "Entries with translation boxes",
    "Pages with 1 entry",
    "Pages with entries",
    "Terms with Cantonese translations",
    "Terms with Czech translations",
    "Terms with Danish translations",
    "Terms with Dutch translations",
    "Terms with Finnish translations",
    "Terms with French translations",
    "Terms with German translations",
    "Terms with Hungarian translations",
    "Terms with Italian translations",
    "Terms with Japanese translations",
    "Terms with Mandarin translations",
    "Terms with Maori translations",
    "Terms with Norman translations",
    "Terms with Norwegian Bokmål translations",
    "Terms with Norwegian Nynorsk translations",
    "Terms with Polish translations",
    "Terms with Portuguese translations",
    "Terms with Russian translations",
    "Terms with Scottish Gaelic translations",
    "Terms with Serbo-Croatian translations",
    "Terms with Slovene translations",
    "Terms with Spanish translations",
    "Terms with Swedish translations",
    "Terms with Ukrainian translations",
    "Terms with West Frisian translations",
    "en:Kitchenware",
    "en:People"
  ],
  "derived": [
    {
      "word": "wooden spooner"
    },
    {
      "word": "wooden spoonist"
    }
  ],
  "forms": [
    {
      "form": "wooden spoons",
      "tags": [
        "plural"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "head_templates": [
    {
      "args": {},
      "expansion": "wooden spoon (plural wooden spoons)",
      "name": "en-noun"
    }
  ],
  "lang": "English",
  "lang_code": "en",
  "pos": "noun",
  "related": [
    {
      "word": "booby prize"
    },
    {
      "word": "lanterne rouge"
    }
  ],
  "senses": [
    {
      "glosses": [
        "A spoon made from wood, commonly used in food preparation."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "spoon",
          "spoon"
        ],
        [
          "wood",
          "wood"
        ]
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "English idioms",
        "English terms with quotations"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1858, Charles Kent, The Derby Ministry: A Series of Cabinet Pictures, page 237:",
          "text": "Earnestly bent upon fulfilling the weighty, nay solemn, responsibilities of his office at all hazard, even at the risk of so far neglecting his parliamentary duties as to appear upon the division-list less frequently than any of his colleagues, Sir John Pakington wore the wooden spoon at the whitebait dinner, though with an air of waggery — almost as a decoration.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "An ironic prize for finishing last in a competition."
      ],
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(idiomatic) An ironic prize for finishing last in a competition."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "idiomatic"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "Cambridge University slang",
        "English dated terms",
        "English terms with quotations",
        "Quotation templates to be cleaned",
        "en:Universities"
      ],
      "examples": [
        {
          "ref": "1843, Thomas Macaulay, Sir James Mackintosh's History of the Revolution:",
          "text": "We submit that a wooden spoon of our day would not be justified in calling Galileo and Napier blockheads because they never heard of the differential calculus.",
          "type": "quote"
        }
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The last junior optime who takes a university degree."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "slang",
          "slang"
        ],
        [
          "junior",
          "junior"
        ],
        [
          "optime",
          "optime"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "Cambridge University slang",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(Cambridge University slang, dated) The last junior optime who takes a university degree."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "dated"
      ]
    },
    {
      "categories": [
        "American English",
        "English dated terms",
        "English student slang",
        "en:Universities"
      ],
      "glosses": [
        "The lowest appointee of the junior year; sometimes, one especially popular in his class, without reference to scholarship. Formerly, it was a custom for classmates to present to this person a wooden spoon with formal ceremonies."
      ],
      "links": [
        [
          "university",
          "university"
        ],
        [
          "slang",
          "slang"
        ],
        [
          "appointee",
          "appointee"
        ]
      ],
      "qualifier": "university slang",
      "raw_glosses": [
        "(US, university slang, dated) The lowest appointee of the junior year; sometimes, one especially popular in his class, without reference to scholarship. Formerly, it was a custom for classmates to present to this person a wooden spoon with formal ceremonies."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "US",
        "dated"
      ]
    }
  ],
  "sounds": [
    {
      "ipa": "/ˈwʊdən spuːn/"
    },
    {
      "audio": "En-au-wooden spoon.ogg",
      "mp3_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/transcoded/e/ed/En-au-wooden_spoon.ogg/En-au-wooden_spoon.ogg.mp3",
      "ogg_url": "https://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/commons/e/ed/En-au-wooden_spoon.ogg"
    }
  ],
  "translations": [
    {
      "code": "yue",
      "english": "muk⁶ gang¹",
      "lang": "Chinese Cantonese",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "木羹"
    },
    {
      "code": "cmn",
      "lang": "Chinese Mandarin",
      "roman": "mùsháo",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "木勺"
    },
    {
      "code": "cs",
      "lang": "Czech",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "vařečka"
    },
    {
      "code": "da",
      "lang": "Danish",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "træske"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "houten lepel"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "pollepel"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "kapusta"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "puukauha"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "cuillère en bois"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Kochlöffel"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "Holzlöffel"
    },
    {
      "code": "hu",
      "lang": "Hungarian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "fakanál"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "cucchiaio di legno"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "mestolo di legno"
    },
    {
      "alt": "しゃもじ",
      "code": "ja",
      "lang": "Japanese",
      "roman": "shamoji",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "杓文字"
    },
    {
      "code": "mi",
      "lang": "Maori",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "koko rākau"
    },
    {
      "code": "nrf",
      "lang": "Norman",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "tchulyi en bouais"
    },
    {
      "code": "nb",
      "lang": "Norwegian Bokmål",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine",
        "masculine"
      ],
      "word": "tresleiv"
    },
    {
      "code": "nn",
      "lang": "Norwegian Nynorsk",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "tresleiv"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "drewniana łyżka"
    },
    {
      "code": "pl",
      "lang": "Polish",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "kopyść"
    },
    {
      "code": "pt",
      "lang": "Portuguese",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "colher de pau"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "note": "for eating, Russian musical instrument or souvenir",
      "roman": "derevjánnaja lóžka",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "деревя́нная ло́жка"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "mesílka",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "меси́лка"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "roman": "mešálka",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "меша́лка"
    },
    {
      "code": "ru",
      "lang": "Russian",
      "note": "for cooking",
      "roman": "vesjólka",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "весёлка"
    },
    {
      "code": "gd",
      "lang": "Scottish Gaelic",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "spàin-fhiodha"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "kuhača"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "Cyrillic",
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "варјача"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "Cyrillic",
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "мешаја"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "Cyrillic",
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "мешајица"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "Roman",
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "varjača"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "Roman",
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "mešaja"
    },
    {
      "code": "sh",
      "lang": "Serbo-Croatian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "Roman",
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "mešejica"
    },
    {
      "code": "sl",
      "lang": "Slovene",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "varjača"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "cuchara de madera"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "note": "the type typically used in cooking",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "träslev"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "english": "generically",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "common-gender"
      ],
      "word": "träsked"
    },
    {
      "code": "uk",
      "lang": "Ukrainian",
      "roman": "kopýstka",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "копи́стка"
    },
    {
      "code": "fy",
      "lang": "West Frisian",
      "sense": "spoon made from wood",
      "word": "spoen"
    },
    {
      "code": "nl",
      "lang": "Dutch",
      "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
      "word": "rode lantaarn"
    },
    {
      "code": "fi",
      "lang": "Finnish",
      "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
      "word": "lohdutuspalkinto"
    },
    {
      "code": "fr",
      "lang": "French",
      "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "cuillère en bois"
    },
    {
      "code": "de",
      "lang": "German",
      "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "rote Laterne"
    },
    {
      "code": "it",
      "lang": "Italian",
      "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
      "tags": [
        "feminine"
      ],
      "word": "maglia nera"
    },
    {
      "code": "es",
      "lang": "Spanish",
      "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
      "word": "cuchara de madera"
    },
    {
      "code": "sv",
      "lang": "Swedish",
      "sense": "prize for coming last in a competition",
      "tags": [
        "neuter"
      ],
      "word": "jumbopris"
    }
  ],
  "wikipedia": [
    "wooden spoon"
  ],
  "word": "wooden spoon"
}

Download raw JSONL data for wooden spoon meaning in English (9.9kB)


This page is a part of the kaikki.org machine-readable English dictionary. This dictionary is based on structured data extracted on 2024-11-06 from the enwiktionary dump dated 2024-10-02 using wiktextract (fbeafe8 and 7f03c9b). The data shown on this site has been post-processed and various details (e.g., extra categories) removed, some information disambiguated, and additional data merged from other sources. See the raw data download page for the unprocessed wiktextract data.

If you use this data in academic research, please cite Tatu Ylonen: Wiktextract: Wiktionary as Machine-Readable Structured Data, Proceedings of the 13th Conference on Language Resources and Evaluation (LREC), pp. 1317-1325, Marseille, 20-25 June 2022. Linking to the relevant page(s) under https://kaikki.org would also be greatly appreciated.