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9 dictionary results for: Calf
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
calf1
[kaf, kahf] Pronunciation Key
—Related forms
[kaf, kahf] Pronunciation Key –noun, plural calves
[kavz, kahvz] Pronunciation Key.
—Idioms
[kavz, kahvz] Pronunciation Key. | 1. | the young of the domestic cow or other bovine animal. |
| 2. | the young of certain other mammals, as the elephant, seal, and whale. |
| 3. | calfskin leather. |
| 4. | Informal. an awkward, silly boy or man. |
| 5. | a mass of ice detached from a glacier, iceberg, or floe. |
| 6. | in calf, (of a cow or other animal having calves) pregnant. |
| 7. | kill the fatted calf, to prepare an elaborate feast in welcome or celebration. |
[Origin: bef. 900; ME; OE cealf, calf; c. OS kalf, ON kalfr, OHG kalb
]
] —Related forms
calfless, adjective
calflike, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This
calf2 [kaf, kahf] Pronunciation Key
–noun, plural calves [kavz, kahvz] Pronunciation Key.
| the fleshy part of the back of the human leg below the knee. |
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| calf 1
(kāf, käf) Pronunciation Key
n. pl. calves (kāvz, kävz)
[Middle English, from Old English cealf.] |
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The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
| calf 2
(kāf, käf) Pronunciation Key
n. pl. calves (kāvz, kävz) The fleshy muscular back part of the human leg between the knee and ankle. [Middle English, from Old Norse kālfi; possibly akin to calf1 (from its shape).] |
(Download Now or Buy the Book)
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Online Etymology Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
calf
calf
O.E. cealf "young cow," from W.Gmc. *kalbam, perh. from PIE *gelb(h)-, from base *gel- "to swell," hence, "womb, fetus, young of an animal." Elliptical sense of "leather made from the skin of a calf" is from 1727. Used of icebergs that break off from glaciers from 1818. Calf of the leg is from O.N. kalfr, source unknown; possibly from the same Gmc. root.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
WordNet - Cite This Source - Share This
| calf | |
noun | |
| 1. | young of domestic cattle |
| 2. | the muscular back part of the shank |
| 3. | fine leather from the skin of a calf |
| 4. | young of various large placental mammals e.g. whale or giraffe or elephant or buffalo |
WordNet® 3.0, © 2006 by Princeton University.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
Calf
Calf\, n.; pl. Calves. [OE. calf, kelf, AS. cealf; akin to D. kalf, G. kalb, Icel. k[=a]lfr, Sw. kalf, Dan. kalv, Goth. kalb[=o]; cf. Skr. garbha fetus, young, Gr. ?????, Skr grabh to seize, conceive, Ir. colpa, colpach, a calf. [root]222.]1. The young of the cow, or of the Bovine family of quadrupeds. Also, the young of some other mammals, as of the elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, and whale. 2. Leather made of the skin of the calf; especially, a fine, light-colored leather used in bookbinding; as, to bind books in calf. 3. An awkward or silly boy or young man; any silly person; a dolt. [Colloq.] Some silly, doting, brainless calf. --Drayton. 4. A small island near a larger; as, the Calf of Man. 5. A small mass of ice set free from the submerged part of a glacier or berg, and rising to the surface. --Kane. 6. [Cf. Icel. k[=a]lfi.] The fleshy hinder part of the leg below the knee. Calf's-foot jelly, jelly made from the feet of calves. The gelatinous matter of the feet is extracted by boiling, and is flavored with sugar, essences, etc.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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