roost

verb

roosted; roosting; roosts

intransitive verb

1

: to settle down for rest or sleep : perch

2

: to settle oneself as if on a roost

transitive verb

: to supply a roost for or put to roost

Synonyms of roost

• perch
• land

Examples of roost in a Sentence

Pigeons roost on the building's ledge.

pigeons flying home to roost on the roof

Recent Examples on the Web

Once the colony grew, the birds roosted in a derelict military barracks nearby, later returning to the pine forest when the facility was renovated. —Amarachi Orie, CNN Money, 14 May 2026

There are six species of birds that flock to neighborhoods and try to roost, said Rachel Richter, an urban wildlife biologist for Texas Parks and Wildlife. —Emily Holshouser, Fort Worth Star-Telegram, 21 Apr. 2026

Lake Conroe residents Michael Hallett and Madi Bullock began an awareness campaign in 2024 to help save the island in Lake Conroe where native and migratory birds roost. —Sondra Hernandez, Houston Chronicle, 18 Apr. 2026

Gobblers roost in the hardwoods and can’t get off the peninsula without walking by me. —Alex Robinson, Outdoor Life, 16 Apr. 2026

Word History

First Known Use

1530, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Phrases Containing roost

• come home to roost
• rule the roost
• the/his chickens are (finally) coming home to roost

Rhymes for roost

• boost
• loosed
• sluiced
• adduced
• conduced
• deduced
• induced
• produced
• reduced
• seduced
• traduced
• transduced

Kids Definition

roost

1 of 2 noun

ˈrüst 

1

: a support on which birds rest

2

: a place where birds often roost

roost

2 of 2 verb

: to settle down for rest or sleep : perch