Definify.com
Webster 1913 Edition
Cow
Cow
,Noun.
pl.
Cows
(kouz); old pl. Kine
(kīn)
. 1.
The mature female of bovine animals.
2.
The female of certain large mammals, as whales, seals, etc.
Cow
,Verb.
T.
[
imp. & p. p.
Cowed
(koud)
; p. pr. & vb. n.
Cowing
.] To depress with fear; to daunt the spirits or courage of; to overawe.
To vanquish a people already
cowed
. Shakespeare
THe French king was
cowed
. J. R. Green.
Cow
,Noun.
[Prob. from same root as
cow
, v. t.] (Mining)
A wedge, or brake, to check the motion of a machine or car; a chock.
Knight.
Webster 1828 Edition
Cow
COW
,Noun.
plu.
Sea-cow, the Manatus, a species of the Trichechus. [See Sea-cow.]
COW
,Verb.
T.
Definition 2024
cow
cow
See also: COW
English
Noun
cow (plural cows or cattle or kine) (see usage notes)
- (properly) An adult female of the species Bos taurus that has calved.
- (formerly inexact but now common) Any member of the species Bos taurus regardless of sex or age, including bulls and calves.
- (uncommon) Beef: the meat of cattle as food.
- (uncommon) Any bovines or bovids generally, including yaks, buffalo, &c.
- (biology) A female member of other large species of mammal, including the bovines, moose, whales, seals, hippos, rhinos, manatees, and elephants.
- (derogatory, informal) A woman considered unpleasant in some way, particularly one considered nasty, stupid, fat, lazy, or difficult.
- 1933, George Orwell, Down and Out in Paris and London, Chapter XXXII,
- […] the worst insult to a woman, either in London or Paris, is "cow"; a name which might even be a compliment, for cows are among the most likeable of animals.
- 1990, House of Cards, Season 1, Episode 2:
- 1933, George Orwell, Down and Out in Paris and London, Chapter XXXII,
- (mining) A chock: a wedge or brake used to stop a machine or car.
Usage notes
The plural cows is the normal plural for multiple individuals, while cattle is used in a more collective sense. The umlaut plurals ky, kye and kine are archaic or dialectal, and are not in common use.
Synonyms
- (derogatory: despicable woman): bitch
- (informal: anything annoyingly difficult): bastard, bitch, bugger (UK)
Antonyms
- (female domesticated ox or other bovine): bull (male, uncastrated), ox or steer (male, castrated), heifer (female, immature)
Derived terms
Terms derived from cow
Translations
female domesticated ox or other bovine
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any domestic bovine regardless of sex or age
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female of various species of mammal
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derogatory: despicable woman
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informal: anything annoyingly difficult
See also
- List of sequenced animal genomes on Wikipedia.Wikipedia
Etymology 2
Probably from Old Norse kúga (“to oppress”) (whence also Danish and Norwegian kue, Swedish kuva); compare Icelandic kúfa (“to set on top”) and Faroese kúga (“to oppress”).
Verb
cow (third-person singular simple present cows, present participle cowing, simple past and past participle cowed)
- (transitive) To intimidate; to daunt the spirits or courage of. Found primarily in the passive voice.
- Con artists are not cowed by the law.
- Shakespeare
- To vanquish a people already cowed.
Translations
to intimidate
Etymology 3
Noun
cow (plural cows)
- (Britain, dialect) A chimney cowl.
- 1836, Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers
- Who could live to gaze from day to day on bricks and slates, who had once felt the influence of a scene like this? Who could continue to exist, where there are no cows but the cows on the chimneypots; nothing redolent of Pan but pan-tiles; […]
- 1836, Charles Dickens, The Pickwick Papers