queep

English

Pronunciation

Audio (General Australian): (file)
Rhymes: -iːp

Etymology 1

Imitative.

Interjection

queep

The sound a bird may make, similar to peep, chirp, cheep.
- 1918, Joseph Grinnell, Harold Child Bryant, Tracy Irwin Storer, The game birds of California:
  In flight they often made a close flock calling, queep, queep, queep, queep, queep, . . .
- 1929, Henry Williamson, The Pathway, Volume 4:
  They followed her at a rapid tiny waddle, crying queep-queep-queep.
The sound a machine may make, similar to beep. See pocketa-queep.

Verb

queep (third-person singular simple present queeps, present participle queeping, simple past and past participle queeped)

To emit a "queep" sound.
- 1969 August, Harlan Ellison, “Along the Scenic Route”, in Adam:
  She started to speak, but the peek queeped, and she studded it on.
- 2000, Diane Duane, Intellivore, Simon and Schuster, page 183:
  The computer queeped softly and then said, “Ship's systems ....”
- 2009, Cory Doctorow, Makers, Macmillan, page 22:
  “This used to be where the contractors kept their heavy equipment,” Lester rumbled, aiming a car door remote at the door, which queeped and opened.

Etymology 2

(This etymology is missing or incomplete. Please add to it, or discuss it at the Etymology scriptorium.)

Noun

queep (uncountable)

(military, slang, US) Non-flying duties, typically paperwork, that are undesirable to pilots.
Why in the hell isn’t there someone else to do all this queep?!
- 1997 July 28, Kurt Bjorn, “Re: USAF Low Morale Confirmed!!!”, in alt.aviation.safety,rec.aviation.military,alt.disasters.aviation‎^[1] (Usenet), message-ID <01bc9b7f$570616e0$0100000a@pyroware.flash.net>:
  It isn't how well you fly, it's who you know and how well you perform your queep ground job.
- 2001 September 6, Zaprass, “Re: Tiny U.S. planes spy as GIs avoid danger”, in rec.aviation.military‎^[2] (Usenet), message-ID <3B9765DD.MD-1.4.4.Zaprass@nospam.com>:
  Still, the above is a true reflection of statistical promotion rates in the context of our current queep-biased system.
- 2007, Jonathan Dowty, Christian Fighter Pilot Is Not an Oxymoron, page 20:
  What fighter pilots do is fly, and that they love, they have little love or tolerance for queep, a term for all paperwork and related jobs that keep a pilot out of the cockpit.
- 2010, David Goldstein, Sharing Orion, AuthorHouse, page 87:
  Besides, if you're not flying, your whole world is going to consist of nothing but office queep.
- 2012 January 1, anonymous author, “Safety Culture”, in Wingman, page 32:
  The stigma that surrounds a safety office and its staff is often that of naysayers or un-cool nerds. We’re the crushers of fun or sultans of queep in many squadrons, but there's no place for that kind of culture in the safety world.

Usage notes

Commonly used in the United States Air Force flying community.

Etymology 3

Short for "quad-sweep", a rowing boat/event.

Noun

queep (uncountable)

A rowing event, with two scullers and two sweepers per shell.