coqui

noun

co·​qui kō-ˈkē How to pronounce coqui (audio)
: a small chiefly nocturnal arboreal frog (Eleutherodactylus coqui) native to Puerto Rico that has a high-pitched call and has been introduced into Hawaii and southern Florida

Examples of coqui in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
And finally, Gabrielle Chenault, the Tennessean’s Williamson County reporter, wrote about recent reports that tourists to Puerto Rico were trying to kill the islands native — but noisy — coqui frogs. Andrea Williams, Nashville Tennessean, 14 June 2025 The first is the coqui, which was accidentally brought to Hawaii by Puerto Rican laborers hired by U.S. companies to work in the Pacific archipelago (it’s considered an invasive species). Fidel Martinez, Los Angeles Times, 10 Jan. 2025 At night, whistle calls of coqui frogs lulled me to sleep. Keyaira Boone, Travel + Leisure, 17 Dec. 2024 The lead singer is the common coqui, a tannish treefrog with big, sticky toes. Benji Jones, Vox, 25 June 2024 Their quarry is a tiny frog called the coqui. Rene Ebersole, National Geographic, 24 June 2020 To learn more about the frog, the rain forest, and everything Puerto Rico has to offer visitors in the future, and to adopt your own little coqui, visit the Discover Puerto Rico website now. Stacey Leasca, Travel + Leisure, 21 Dec. 2020 If the trend holds, the calls of male coqui frogs could be 17 percent shorter — and as much as 12 percent higher in frequency — by the end of the century. Emily Anthes, New York Times, 21 Apr. 2020 Some of the questions pertained to the island's food and geography and naming the indigenous frog that inhabits Puerto Rico -- the coqui. Fox News, 4 July 2019

Word History

Etymology

American Spanish coquí

First Known Use

circa 1903, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of coqui was circa 1903

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Cite this Entry

“Coqui.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/coqui. Accessed 18 Jul. 2025.

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