cow
- 1A large domestic animal kept for milk or beef, strictly a fully grown female that has had a calf, but loosely any cattle, or a similar animal such as a yak or buffalo.
He pointed at the field and said all those cows were his.
A cow had broken through the fence and was grazing in the neighbor's garden.
UsageCattle takes a plural verb: the cattle are grazing. Do not add -s.
Note
Everyday speech stretches the word over the whole herd, so a farm show can be full of "cows" that turn out to be enormous bulls.
- 2To intimidate someone into submission, breaking down their spirit or courage.
The dictator used fear to cow his critics into silence.
Aggressive landlords often cow tenants who do not know their rights.
UsageMostly passive: be cowed by threats, cowed into silence. Active, you cow someone into doing something.
Similarintimidate, daunt, bully, browbeat, menace
Oppositeembolden
Note
A different word that happens to share the spelling. The Spectator in 1711 writes of "a people already cowed." The active turns up in Montgomery's Emily of New Moon (1923), with a gaze that "cowed and compelled."
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 5 facts
- The verb has a separate origin from the cattle noun. en.wiktionary.org
- The Spectator used the quoted wording in 1711, in issue 167. gutenberg.org
- L. M. Montgomery wrote Emily of New Moon, first published in 1923. gutenberg.org
- The novel's first-edition title page dates it to 1923. gutenberg.org
- The novel's narrator describes Emily's gaze using the exact words 'cowed and compelled'. gutenberg.org
- 3The female of a large mammal species other than domestic cattle, including other bovines, moose, whales, seals, hippos, rhinos, manatees, and elephants.
A cow moose led her calf across the frozen river.
Biologists fitted a satellite tag to a humpback cow traveling with her calf off the coast.
UsageOften before the animal's name: a cow elephant, a cow moose. For elephants and moose, the male is a bull and the young a calf.
Note
Field biologists borrow the farmyard words for many large mammals: the female elephant, moose or whale is a cow, the male a bull, the young a calf.
Less common meanings
- 4An insulting term for a woman regarded as unpleasant, especially one thought nasty, stupid, fat, lazy, or difficult.
He muttered that his landlady was a miserable old cow.
Stop being a cow and let your sister have a turn.
UsageUsually used with an adjective: silly cow, stupid cow, miserable old cow.
Note
An insult heard in British and Irish speech, and a sharp one: George Orwell, in Down and Out in Paris and London (1933), called it the worst insult to a woman in either city. Marina Hyde turns it on herself in 2014, which shows how it softens into rueful self-mockery.
Checked 3 Nov 2026 · 4 facts
- George Orwell wrote Down and Out in Paris and London, first published in 1933. en.wikipedia.org
- Orwell himself described cow as the worst insult to a woman in London or Paris. telelib.com
- Marina Hyde's cited use was published in 2014. theguardian.com
- Hyde applied cow to herself; describing this as self-mockery is supported by the passage. theguardian.com
- 5The meat of cattle prepared and eaten as food, otherwise known as beef.
We bought a few choice cuts of cow to throw on the grill.
That's a lot of cow for one burger!
Similarbeef
- 6
- 7A third-year cadet at the United States Military Academy at West Point.
- 8In mining, a chock: a wedge or brake used to stop a machine or a mine car from moving.
- 9A chimney cowl: a hood or cover fitted over a chimney top to improve draft and keep out rain.
- 10A luminous fast blue optical transient: a rare, extremely bright astronomical flash that brightens and fades very quickly.
Showing meanings only.
Practice
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Origins
Inherited from Middle English cow, from Old English cū, from Proto-Germanic *kōz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷṓws ("cow"). It is related to words like German Kuh, Dutch koe, Latin bōs, and Ancient Greek boûs, and is a doublet of beef.
Checked 31 Oct 2026 · 5 facts
- Cow is inherited through Middle English cow and Old English cū from Proto-Germanic *kōz, ultimately from Proto-Indo-European *gʷṓws, meaning cow. en.wiktionary.org
- Cow is related to German Kuh. en.wiktionary.org
- Cow is related to Dutch koe. en.wiktionary.org
- Cow is related to Latin bōs and Ancient Greek boûs. en.wiktionary.org
- Cow and beef are etymological doublets. en.wikipedia.org
Most likely it comes from the Old Norse verb kúga, "to oppress." Norwegian and Danish kue share that origin, and Swedish kuva and the Faroese verb kúga, with the same meaning, can be compared.
Checked 1 Nov 2026 · 6 facts
- The verb cow most likely derives from Old Norse kúga. en.wiktionary.org
- Old Norse kúga means to oppress. en.wiktionary.org
- Norwegian kue derives from Old Norse kúga. en.wiktionary.org
- Danish kue derives from Old Norse kúga. en.wiktionary.org
- Swedish kuva is a comparable verb meaning to subdue or suppress. en.wiktionary.org
- Faroese kúga is a comparable verb meaning to oppress. en.wiktionary.org