English

Noun

gawk ‎(plural gawks)

1. A cuckoo.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of Johnson to this entry?)

2. A fool.
   • 1855 Thomas Carlyle, The Prinzenraub, Westminster Review

     A Duke of Weissenfels, for instance; foolish old gawk, whom Wilhehnina Princess Royal recollects for his distracted notions, — which were well shaken out of him by Wilhelmina's Brother afterwards.

3. A simpleton; a stupid or clumsy person.

Translations

Etymology 2

Perhaps from English dialectal gaw ‎(“to stare; gawk”) +‎ -k, as in talk, stalk, etc., ultimately from Old Norse gá ‎(“to heed”)^[1].

Verb

gawk ‎(third-person singular simple present gawks, present participle gawking, simple past and past participle gawked)

1. To stare or gape stupidly.
2. To stare conspicuously.

Translations

References

1. ↑ “gawk” in Douglas Harper, Online Etymology Dictionary (2001).