popinjay

UK: /ˈpɒpɪnˌdʒeɪ/ US: (pop′in jā′)

WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025

pop•in•jay  (pop′in jā′), n. 

1. a person given to vain, pretentious displays and empty chatter;
   coxcomb;
   fop.
2. Birds [Brit. Dial.] a woodpecker, esp. the green woodpecker.
3. British Terms [Archaic.] the figure of a parrot usually fixed on a pole and used as a target in archery and gun shooting.
4. [Archaic.] a parrot.

• Arabic bab(ba)ghā'
• Spanish papagayo
• Middle French papegai, papingay parrot
• Middle English papejay, popingay, papinjai(e) 1275–1325

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::

popinjay / ˈpɒpɪnˌdʒeɪ/ noun

1. a conceited, foppish, or excessively talkative person
2. an archaic word for parrot
3. the figure of a parrot used as a target

Etymology: 13th Century papeniai, from Old French papegay a parrot, from Spanish papagayo, from Arabic babaghā