- the mature female of any species of cattle, esp domesticated cattle
- the mature female of various other mammals, such as the elephant, whale, and seal
- (not in technical use) any domestic species of cattle
- informal offensive a disagreeable woman
- Austral NZ slang something objectionable (esp in the phrase a fair cow)
WordReference Random House Learner's Dictionary of American English © 2026
cow1 /kaʊ/USA pronunciation
n. [countable]
cow•like, adj.
cow2 /kaʊ/USA pronunciation v. [~ + object]
WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2026- Zoologythe mature female of cattle:The cows were kept for their milk.
- Animal Husbandry, Zoology, Informal TermsInformal. a domestic bovine of either sex and any age:Look at all the cows in the field.
- Zoologythe female of various other large animals, such as the elephant.
- Idioms have a cow,[Slang.] to become very excited or angry;
have a fit:told his teacher not to have a cow just because he forgot his homework.
cow•like, adj.
cow2 /kaʊ/USA pronunciation v. [~ + object]
- to frighten with threats;
intimidate:I was cowed into agreeing with the boss.
cow1
(kou),USA pronunciation n., pl. cows, (Archaic) kine.
cow′like′, adj.
cow2 (kou),USA pronunciation v.t.
- Zoologythe mature female of a bovine animal, esp. of the genus Bos.
- Zoologythe female of various other large animals, as the elephant or whale.
- Animal Husbandry, Zoology, Informal Terms[Informal.]a domestic bovine of either sex and any age.
- Slang Terms(disparaging and offensive). a large, obese, and slovenly woman.
- Slang Terms[Offensive.]a woman who has a large number of children or is frequently pregnant.
- Idioms till or until the cows come home, for a long time;
forever:You can keep arguing till the cows come home, but I won't change my mind.
- bef. 900; Middle English cou, Old English cū; cognate with German Kuh, Dutch koe, Old Norse kȳr, Latin bōs, Greek boûs ox; compare bovine, gaur
cow2 (kou),USA pronunciation v.t.
- to frighten with threats, violence, etc.;
intimidate;
overawe.
- Old Norse kūga to oppress, cow; compare Danish kue to cow
- 1595–1605
- terrorize, scare, bully.
Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
cow /kaʊ/ n
cow /kaʊ/ vb
- (transitive) to frighten or overawe, as with threats
'cow' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
asiago
- bag
- bail
- bail up
- beef
- beestings
- botanical
- bovine
- BSE
- burrata
- butter
- cash cow
- cloven hoof
- cowbell
- cow cocky
- cowhide
- cow parsley
- cowpat
- cowslip
- cradle
- doe
- dry
- giant hogweed
- hart
- heifer
- hogweed
- Isis
- keck
- kouprey
- mad cow disease
- milch
- milk
- milker
- moggy
- moo
- o
- parsley
- parsnip
- Queen Anne's lace
- sacred cow
- sea cow
- sirenian
- strip
- throw
- tripe
- vaccine
- Vacherin
- American cowslip
- ant cow
- appenzeller