1
: a cage or small enclosure (as for poultry)
also
: a small building for housing poultry
2
a
: a confined area
b
: jail
cooped; cooping; coops
1
: to confine in a restricted and often crowded area
—usually used with up
children cooped up in the house all day
2
: to place or keep in a coop : pen
—often used with up
Examples of coop in a Sentence
Noun (1)
was thrown in the coop for disturbing the peace
a chicken coop
Verb
restless kids cooped up in the house on a rainy day
Recent Examples on the Web
Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 30 June 2025
Topics include: chicken breeds, raising chicks, designing coops and pens, and chicken health and nutrition.
—Joe Rassel, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 June 2025
Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 3 May 2020
There’s something about being cooped up that calls for an abundance of comfort food, and nothing compares to a big bowl of cheesy baked ziti, lemony fusilli, or soupy ramen.
—Whitney Perry, Glamour, 30 Mar. 2020
Vanessa Romo, NPR, 7 July 2025
Unlike a traditional grocery store, the planned co-op is less focused on profit and more intentional on meeting community needs and providing access to fresh foods, Royal said.
—Briah Lumpkins, Charlotte Observer, 7 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for coop
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Noun
Contact your local university coop extension service (find yours here) for identification.
—Arricca Elin Sansone, Southern Living, 30 June 2025
Topics include: chicken breeds, raising chicks, designing coops and pens, and chicken health and nutrition.
—Joe Rassel, The Orlando Sentinel, 25 June 2025
Verb
Three relative strangers cooped up underground indefinitely to avoid an unseen danger, who don't entirely trust each other?
—Jennifer Ouellette, Ars Technica, 3 May 2020
There’s something about being cooped up that calls for an abundance of comfort food, and nothing compares to a big bowl of cheesy baked ziti, lemony fusilli, or soupy ramen.
—Whitney Perry, Glamour, 30 Mar. 2020
Noun
In the end, the co-op allowed online voting, and the meeting became hybrid.
—Vanessa Romo, NPR, 7 July 2025
Unlike a traditional grocery store, the planned co-op is less focused on profit and more intentional on meeting community needs and providing access to fresh foods, Royal said.
—Briah Lumpkins, Charlotte Observer, 7 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for coop
Cite this Entry
“Coop.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/coop. Accessed 13 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
coop
2 of 3 verb
: to place or keep in or as if in a coop
co-op
3 of 3 nounˈkō-ˌäp,
kō-ˈäp
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