poultry
B1Neutral to formal; common in agricultural, commercial, culinary, and nutritional contexts.
Definition
Meaning
Domesticated birds kept for their meat or eggs, especially chickens, turkeys, ducks, and geese.
The meat from these birds when used as food; the industry or business of raising such birds.
Linguistics
Semantic Notes
A collective noun (uncountable in its primary sense). Refers to the category/livestock as a whole, not individual birds (which are 'fowl'). Often contrasts with 'red meat'.
Dialectal Variation
British vs American Usage
Differences
Usage is largely identical. 'Poultry' is the standard term in both. 'Fowl' is somewhat more old-fashioned/formal in both, but slightly more common in UK historical/legal contexts (e.g., 'hen fowl').
Connotations
Neutral commercial/culinary term in both. In UK, may have slightly stronger association with traditional farming. In US, may have stronger industrial/conveyor-belt connotations.
Frequency
Equally common in both varieties. Slightly higher relative frequency in US due to larger scale of industrial poultry farming.
Vocabulary
Collocations
Grammar
Valency Patterns
[uncountable noun][modifier + poultry][poultry + noun]Vocabulary
Synonyms
Strong
Neutral
Weak
Vocabulary
Antonyms
Phrases
Idioms & Phrases
- “None directly. Related: 'Don't count your chickens before they hatch' (involves poultry rearing).”
Usage
Context Usage
Business
Refers to the livestock sector, e.g., 'The poultry industry faces rising feed costs.'
Academic
Used in agricultural science, economics, and nutrition studies, e.g., 'Poultry genetics have been selectively improved.'
Everyday
Common in cooking/food contexts, e.g., 'I need to buy some poultry for the roast.'
Technical
Used in veterinary medicine, food safety, and animal husbandry, e.g., 'Avian influenza is a major threat to poultry.'
Examples
By Part of Speech
verb
British English
- They poultry farm on a large scale.
- The family has poultryed for generations.
American English
- He poultry farms in Indiana.
- They are poultrying as a side business.
adverb
British English
- N/A
American English
- N/A
adjective
British English
- N/A – 'poultry' is not standardly used as an adjective. Use 'poultry' as a noun modifier: poultry farm, poultry sector.
American English
- N/A – 'poultry' is not standardly used as an adjective. Use 'poultry' as a noun modifier: poultry farmer, poultry inspection.
Examples
By CEFR Level
- We eat poultry twice a week.
- Chickens are a type of poultry.
- The shop sells fresh poultry.
- Poultry farming is common in this region.
- You should always cook poultry thoroughly.
- Red meat is often more expensive than poultry.
- The outbreak of disease devastated the local poultry industry.
- Nutritionists often recommend poultry as a lean source of protein.
- Regulations concerning poultry welfare have been tightened.
- The economics of poultry production are heavily influenced by feed grain prices.
- Vertical integration is characteristic of the modern poultry sector.
- Comparative genomics has revolutionized poultry breeding programs.
Learning
Memory Aids
Mnemonic
Think of 'POUL' sounding like 'POLE' where chickens might roost, and 'TRY' to remember it's a category you try cooking with.
Conceptual Metaphor
POULTRY AS COMMODITY/LIVESTOCK (treated as a mass product), POULTRY AS WHITE MEAT (healthier alternative to red meat).
Watch out
Common Pitfalls
Translation Traps (for Russian speakers)
- False friend: Russian 'птица' (ptitsa) can mean 'bird' of any kind, but 'poultry' is specifically domesticated. Avoid translating 'poultry' as just 'птица'; use 'домашняя птица' or 'птицеводство'.
- Confusion with 'мясо птицы' (bird meat) which is a correct translation for 'poultry' as food, but not for the living animals.
Common Mistakes
- Using as a countable noun (*'three poultrys').
- Confusing 'poultry' (uncountable category) with 'a chicken/a duck' (countable).
- Misspelling as 'poulty' or 'poutry'.
- Using incorrect verb agreement: 'Poultry is...' (correct) vs. 'Poultry are...' (usually incorrect unless referring to individual birds poetically).
Practice
Quiz
Which of the following is NOT typically considered poultry?
FAQ
Frequently Asked Questions
It is an uncountable (mass) noun and is treated as singular grammatically: 'The poultry is delivered on Tuesday.'
'Poultry' is the standard modern term for domesticated birds as livestock/food. 'Fowl' is older, can be broader (including wild birds), and is more formal or literary.
Not directly. 'Poultry' refers to the birds themselves or their meat. The egg industry is related but separate; you would say 'poultry and eggs' or 'egg production'.
Yes, domesticated ducks raised for meat or eggs are classified as poultry.