cow
A large female farm animal kept to produce meat and milk
A herd of cows
Oxford Essential Dictionary
cow
noun
a big female farm animal that is kept for its milk or meat
word building
The male is called a bull and a young cow is called a calf. Meat from a cow is called beef and meat from a calf is called veal.
Longman Dictionary of Contemporary English
cow
I. cow1 S2 /kaʊ/ BrE AmE noun [countable]
[Language: Old English; Origin: cu]
1. a large female animal that is kept on farms and used to produce milk or meat ⇨ bull
2. a male or female animal of this type ⇨ bull:
a herd of cows
3. the female of some large animals, such as the ↑elephant or the ↑whale ⇨ bull
4. British English spoken not polite an offensive word for a woman who you think is stupid or unpleasant
5. have a cow informal to be very angry or surprised about something
6. till the cows come home informal for a very long time, or for ever
⇨ ↑cash cow, ↑mad cow disease, ↑sacred cow
• • •
COLLOCATIONS
■ types of cow
▪ dairy cows (=kept for their milk) He keeps a herd of dairy cows.
▪ beef cows (=kept for their meat) They are a well-known breed of beef cow.
■ verbs
▪ milk a cow (=get the milk from a cow) Once a day, the cows are brought in to be milked.
▪ a cow moos (=makes a long low sound) I could hear cows mooing in the barn.
▪ a cow grazes (=eats the grass) Cows were grazing peacefully in the meadows.
▪ a cow calves (=produces a calf, a young cow) At this time of year the cows are calving.
■ phrases
▪ a herd of cows (=a group that are together somewhere) We had to wait while a farmer brought a herd of cows across the bridge.
Oxford Advanced Learner's Dictionary
cow
cow [cow cows cowed cowing] noun, verb [kaʊ] [kaʊ]
noun
1. a large animal kept on farms to produce milk or beef
• cow's milk
• a herd of dairy cows (= cows kept for their milk)
compare bull, calf, heifer
see also cattle
2. the female of the elephant, whale and some other large animals
compare bull
3. (slang, disapproving) an offensive word for a woman
• You stupid cow!
• That interfering old cow has never liked me.
4. (AustralE, NZE) an unpleasant person, thing or situation
see also cash cow, sacred cow
Word Origin:
n. Old English cū Germanic Dutch koe German Kuh Indo-European Latin bos Greek bous
v. late 16th cent. Old Norse kúga ‘oppress’
Example Bank:
• The region is treated as a milch cow by central government.
• the sacred cow of free market economics
Idioms: have a cow ▪ till the cows come home
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary
Cambridge Advanced Learner's Dictionary - 4th Edition
cow / kaʊ / noun (ANIMAL)
A1 [ C ] a large female farm animal kept to produce meat and milk:
a dairy cow
[ C ] a large female adult mammal such as an elephant, a whale, or a seal:
a cow elephant
cow / kaʊ / noun [ C ] UK offensive (WOMAN)
an unkind or unpleasant woman:
You stupid cow!
cow / kaʊ / noun [ S ] Australian English informal (UNPLEASANT THING)
something difficult or unpleasant:
It's been a cow of a day.
© Cambridge University Press 2013
Collins COBUILD Advanced Learner’s English Dictionary
cow
/kaʊ/
(cows, cowing, cowed)
Frequency: The word is one of the 3000 most common words in English.
1.
A cow is a large female animal that is kept on farms for its milk. People sometimes refer to male and female animals of this species as cows.
Dad went out to milk the cows.
...a herd of cows.
N-COUNT
see also cattle
2.
Some female animals, including elephants and whales, are called cows.
...a cow elephant.
N-COUNT: oft N n
3.
If someone describes a woman as a cow, they dislike her and think that she is unpleasant or stupid. (INFORMAL, OFFENSIVE)
N-COUNT [disapproval]
4.
If someone is cowed, they are made afraid, or made to behave in a particular way because they have been frightened or badly treated. (FORMAL)
The government, far from being cowed by these threats, has vowed to continue its policy.
...cowing them into submission.
= intimidate
VERB: be V-ed, V n into n/-ing
• cowed
By this time she was so cowed by the beatings that she meekly obeyed.
ADJ: oft ADJ by n
Merriam-Webster's Advanced Learner's Dictionary
1cow /ˈkaʊ/ noun, pl cows [count]
1 a : a large animal that is raised by people for milk or meat usually on a farm
• horses, chickens, and cows especially; : the adult female of this animal
• The cows need to be milked twice a day.
- compare bull, calf
b : an adult female of some other large animals (such as elephants, whales, and seals)
2 chiefly Brit slang offensive : a woman who is stupid or annoying
• You stupid cow!
have a cow slang : to become very angry, upset, etc.
• Don't have a cow! I said I'd take care of the problem and I will.
holy cow informal
- used as an interjection to express surprise or excitement
• Holy cow! That car almost ran into us!
till/until the cows come home informal : for a very long time
• They'll be arguing about this till the cows come home.
- see also cash cow, sacred cow
