Shoo is what you say when you're trying to make an animal or person go away, usually while waving your hands at the same time. When a fly keeps buzzing around your lunch, you might say “Shoo! Shoo!” and wave it away. When birds land on your garden and start eating the seeds you just planted, you run outside shooing them off.

The word works like a gentle command that means “go away” or “get out of here.” A librarian might shoo noisy students out of the quiet reading area. A chef might shoo curious cats away from the kitchen counter. Parents sometimes playfully shoo their kids outside, saying “Go on, shoo! Go play!”

The word captures both the sound and the action: you're making a “shoo” noise while flapping or waving to send something away. It's not meant to be mean or aggressive, just firm. You're not trying to hurt anyone or anything, just encouraging them to leave. When you shoo something, you're basically saying “this isn't your place right now” in the quickest, simplest way possible.