cow

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cow¹

(kou)

1. The mature female of cattle of the genus Bos.

2. The mature female of certain other large animals, such as elephants, moose, or whales.

3. A domesticated bovine of either sex or any age.

Idioms:

have a cow

Slang To become amazed, angered, or upset: He had a cow when he saw the mess we made.

till the cows come home Informal

For a very long time; indefinitely: They could argue till the cows come home and still not reach an agreement.

[Middle English cou, from Old English cū; see g^wou- in Indo-European roots.]

cow′y adj.

cow²

(kou)

tr.v. cowed, cow·ing, cows

To frighten or subdue with threats or a show of force. See Synonyms at intimidate.

[Probably of Scandinavian origin.]

cow′ed·ly (-ĭd-lē) adv.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

cow

(kaʊ)

1. (Animals) the mature female of any species of cattle, esp domesticated cattle

2. (Zoology) the mature female of various other mammals, such as the elephant, whale, and seal

3. (Breeds) (not in technical use) any domestic species of cattle

4. informal a disagreeable woman

5. slang Austral and NZ something objectionable (esp in the phrase a fair cow)

6. till the cows come home informal for a very long time; effectively for ever

[Old English cū; related to Old Norse kӯr, Old High German kuo, Latin bōs, Greek boūs, Sanskrit gāŭs]

cow

(kaʊ)

(tr) to frighten or overawe, as with threats

[C17: from Old Norse kūga to oppress, related to Norwegian kue, Swedish kuva]

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

cow¹

(kaʊ)

n.

1. the mature female of a bovine animal, esp. of the genus Bos.

2. the female of various other large animals, as the elephant or whale.

3. Informal. a domestic bovine of either sex and any age.

Idioms:

have a cow, to become hysterical.

[before 900; Middle English cou, Old English cū, c. Old Saxon kō, Old High German chuo, Old Norse kȳr, Latin bōs, Greek boûs ox]

cow²

(kaʊ)

v.t.

to frighten with threats; intimidate; overawe.

[1595–1605; < Old Norse kūga to oppress, cow]

Cow

a bunch of twigs; a birch or besom of twigs.

Examples: cow of heather, 1651; of birch; of broom; of twigs.

cow

Past participle: cowed
Gerund: cowing

Imperative
cow
cow

Present
I cow
you cow
he/she/it cows
we cow
you cow
they cow

Preterite
I cowed
you cowed
he/she/it cowed
we cowed
you cowed
they cowed

Present Continuous
I am cowing
you are cowing
he/she/it is cowing
we are cowing
you are cowing
they are cowing

Present Perfect
I have cowed
you have cowed
he/she/it has cowed
we have cowed
you have cowed
they have cowed

Past Continuous
I was cowing
you were cowing
he/she/it was cowing
we were cowing
you were cowing
they were cowing

Past Perfect
I had cowed
you had cowed
he/she/it had cowed
we had cowed
you had cowed
they had cowed

Future
I will cow
you will cow
he/she/it will cow
we will cow
you will cow
they will cow

Future Perfect
I will have cowed
you will have cowed
he/she/it will have cowed
we will have cowed
you will have cowed
they will have cowed

Future Continuous
I will be cowing
you will be cowing
he/she/it will be cowing
we will be cowing
you will be cowing
they will be cowing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been cowing
you have been cowing
he/she/it has been cowing
we have been cowing
you have been cowing
they have been cowing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been cowing
you will have been cowing
he/she/it will have been cowing
we will have been cowing
you will have been cowing
they will have been cowing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been cowing
you had been cowing
he/she/it had been cowing
we had been cowing
you had been cowing
they had been cowing

Conditional
I would cow
you would cow
he/she/it would cow
we would cow
you would cow
they would cow

Past Conditional
I would have cowed
you would have cowed
he/she/it would have cowed
we would have cowed
you would have cowed
they would have cowed

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	cow - female of domestic cattle: "`moo-cow' is a child's term" moo-cow udder, bag - mammary gland of bovids (cows and sheep and goats) Bos taurus, cattle, cows, kine, oxen - domesticated bovine animals as a group regardless of sex or age; "so many head of cattle"; "wait till the cows come home"; "seven thin and ill-favored kine"- Bible; "a team of oxen" springing cow, springer - a cow about to give birth heifer - young cow poll - the part of the head between the ears
	2.	cow - mature female of mammals of which the male is called `bull' eutherian, eutherian mammal, placental, placental mammal - mammals having a placenta; all mammals except monotremes and marsupials
	3.	cow - a large unpleasant woman disagreeable woman, unpleasant woman - a woman who is an unpleasant person
Verb	1.	cow - subdue, restrain, or overcome by affecting with a feeling of awe; frighten (as with threats) overawe awe - inspire awe in; "The famous professor awed the undergraduates" buffalo - intimidate or overawe

cow

verb intimidate, daunt, frighten, scare, bully, dismay, awe, subdue, unnerve, overawe, terrorize, browbeat, psych out (informal), dishearten She was so cowed by her husband that she meekly obeyed him in everything.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

cow

verb

To domineer or drive into compliance by the use of as threats or force, for example:

bludgeon, browbeat, bulldoze, bully, bullyrag, hector, intimidate, menace, threaten.

Informal: strong-arm.

Translations

koei

أُنثـى بَعض الحَيواناتابقاربقربقرةبَقَرَة

крава

krávasamiceskotturvyděsit

kokueunderkuehun-

Kuh ab einschüchtern

αγελάδα βόδι

bovino

vaca brujahembra (de algunos animales)intimidar

lehm

lehmänautapelottaa

vache bovin chipie garce intimider

krava

megfélemlíttehén

beljahræîa til undirgefnikÿrkÿr, kvendÿr

mucca vacca vaccino bastarda bovino

雌牛

암소

govsiebiedētmātīte

koe rund

ku kue underkue hunn--ku

krowa

vaca

vacă

корова коровий

krava

kravaкрава

kokossanötkreatur

วัวตัวเมีย

inek korkutmakyıldırmakdişi…

корова

con bò cái

母牛牛吓唬恐吓母兽

cow

¹ [kaʊ]

A. N

1. (Zool) → vaca f; (= female of other species) → hembra f
till the cows come home → hasta que las ranas críen pelo

2. (= woman) → estúpida f, bruja f

B. CPD cow house N → establo m
cow parsley N → perejil m de monte
cow town N (US) → pueblucho m de mala muerte

cow

² [kaʊ] VT [+ person] → intimidar, acobardar
a cowed look → una mirada temerosa

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

cow

[ˈkaʊ]

(= farm animal) → vache f
to do sth until the cows come home → faire qch jusqu'à la saint-glinglin

(= female elephant) → éléphant m femelle, éléphante f (= female whale) → baleine f femelle

(= woman) → vache f

modif [elephant, whale] → femelle

vt (= intimidate) → effrayer, intimider
to cow sb into sth → intimider qn pour qu'il (or elle) fasse qch

Collins English/French Electronic Resource. © HarperCollins Publishers 2005

cow

cowbell

n → Kuhglocke f

cowboy

→ Cowboy m; to play cows and Indians → Indianer spielen; the little boy was wearing a cow outfit → der kleine Junge war als Cowboy verkleidet

(fig inf, incompetent) → Pfuscher m; (dishonest) → Gauner m (inf); a cow outfit → ein windiges Unternehmen (inf)

cowboy hat

n → Cowboyhut m

cowcatcher

n (Rail) → Schienenräumer m

cow dung

n → Kuhmist m

cow

cowgirl

n → Cowgirl nt

cowhand

n → Hilfscowboy m; (on farm) → Stallknecht m

cowherd

n → Kuhhirte m

cowhide

(untanned) → Kuhhaut f; (no pl: = leather) → Rindsleder nt

(US: = whip) → Lederpeitsche f

cow

cow parsley

n → Wiesenkerbel m

cowpat

n → Kuhfladen m

cowpoke

n (US inf) → Kuhheini m (pej inf), → Cowboy m

cowpox

n → Kuhpocken pl

cowpuncher

n (US inf) → Cowboy m

cow

cowshed

n → Kuhstall m

cowslip

n (Brit: = primrose) → Schlüsselblume f; (US: = kingcup) → Sumpfdotterblume f

cow

→ Kuh f; a cow elephant → eine Elefantenkuh; till the cows come home (fig inf) → bis in alle Ewigkeit (inf); you’ll be waiting till the cows come home (fig inf) → da kannst du warten, bis du schwarz wirst (inf); to have a cow (US inf) → die Fassung verlieren, sich aufregen

(pej inf: = woman, stupid) → Kuh f (inf); (nasty) → gemeine Ziege (inf); cheeky/lazy/nosey cow! → freches/faules/neugieriges Stück! (inf)

cow

vt person, animal → einschüchtern, verschüchtern; she had a cowed look about her → sie machte einen eingeschüchterten or verschüchterten Eindruck; to cow somebody into submission → jdn (durch Einschüchterung) gefügig machen

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

cow

[kaʊ]

1. n (bovine) → mucca, vacca; (female elephant) → elefantessa; (female seal) → (foca) femmina (fam!) (woman) → stronza (fam!)
you can cry till the cows come home, but you're not having it → puoi piangere quanto ti pare, tanto non te lo do

2. vt (person) → intimidire
a cowed look → un'aria da cane bastonato

3. adj → femmina

cow¹

(kau) noun

1. the female of cattle used for giving milk. He has ten cows and a bull.

2. the female of certain other animals eg the elephant, whale.

ˈcowboy noun

in the United States, a man who looks after cattle on a ranch.

ˈcowherd noun

a person who looks after cows.

ˈcowhide noun, adjective

(of) the skin of a cow made into leather. a bag made of cowhide; a cowhide bag.

cow²

(kau) verb

to subdue or control through fear. The pupil was cowed by the headmaster's harsh words.

cow

→ بَقَرَة kráva ko Kuh αγελάδα vaca lehmä vache krava mucca 雌牛 암소 koe ku krowa vaca корова ko วัวตัวเมีย inek con bò cái 母牛

cow

n. vaca, animal bovino.

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

His horse would have ran off, if a shepherd who was coming by, driving a cow, had not stopped it.

View in context

And when these words had been repeated until Cadmus was tired of hearing them (especially as he could not imagine what cow it was, or why he was to follow her), the gusty hole gave vent to another sentence.

View in context

They began walking through the country of the china people, and the first thing they came to was a china milkmaid milking a china cow. As they drew near, the cow suddenly gave a kick and kicked over the stool, the pail, and even the milkmaid herself, and all fell on the china ground with a great clatter.

View in context

She also changed the slave into a cow, which she sent to my steward.

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And Levin, to turn the conversation, explained to Darya Alexandrovna the theory of cow-keeping, based on the principle that the cow is simply a machine for the transformation of food into milk, and so on.

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"How shall I know Sea Cow when I meet him?" said Kotick, sheering off.

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"Does a cat talk like a cow, or a cow talk like a cat?"

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The woman, who was very handsome, waited till my mother had finished her angry words; then she looked up and spoke slowly, "There is a cow by you with milk dropping from its udder; will you not even give me and my boy a gourd of milk?" And she took a gourd from her bundle and held it towards us.

View in context

I had heard our neighbours laughing when they told how Peter always had to go home at night to milk his cow. Other bachelor homesteaders used canned milk, to save trouble.

View in context

For example, if my neighbour has a mind to my cow, he has a lawyer to prove that he ought to have my cow from me.

View in context

Namgay Doola, men said, had gone forth in the night and with a sharp knife had cut off the tail of a cow belonging to the rabbit-faced villager who had betrayed him.

View in context

The animals of Abyssinia; the elephant, unicorn, their horses and cows; with a particular account of the moroc.

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