cock

1
[ kok ]
See synonyms for cock on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a male chicken; rooster.

  2. the male of any bird, especially a gallinaceous bird.

  1. Also called stopcock . a hand-operated valve or faucet, especially one opened or closed by rotating a cylindrical or tapered plug having part of the passage pierced through it from side to side.

  2. (in a firearm)

    • the part of the lock that, by its fall or action, causes the discharge; hammer.

    • the position into which the cock, or hammer, is brought by being drawn partly or completely back, preparatory to firing.

  3. Slang: Vulgar.

    • sexual relations with a man.

  4. a leader; chief person.

  5. Chiefly British Informal. pal; chum.

  6. British Slang. nonsense.

  7. Horology. a bracketlike plate holding bearings, supported at one end only.: Compare bridge1 (def. 17).

  8. Archaic. the time of the crowing of the cock; early in the morning; cockcrow.

verb (used with object)
  1. to pull back and set the cock, or hammer, of (a firearm) preparatory to firing.

  2. to draw back in preparation for throwing or hitting: He cocked his bat and waited for the pitch.

  1. to set (a camera shutter or other mechanism) for tripping.: Compare trip1 (def. 28).

verb (used without object)
  1. to cock the firing mechanism of a firearm.

Origin of cock

1
First recorded before 900; Middle English coc, cock, cocke, Old English coc, cocc; cognate with Old Norse kokkr; imitative of a rooster's crow

Other words from cock

  • cock·like, adjective

Other definitions for cock (2 of 3)

cock2
[ kok ]

verb (used with object)
  1. to set or turn up or to one side, often in an assertive, jaunty, or significant manner: He cocked his eyebrow questioningly.

verb (used without object)
  1. to stand or stick up conspicuously.

  2. Scot. and New England. to strut; swagger; put on airs of importance.

noun
  1. the act of turning the head, a hat, etc., up or to one side in a jaunty or significant way.

  2. the position of anything thus placed.

Origin of cock

2
First recorded in 1705–15; probably special use of cock1

Other definitions for cock (3 of 3)

cock3
[ kok ]

nounChiefly Northern and North Midland U.S.
  1. a conical pile of hay, dung, etc.

verb (used with object)
  1. to pile (hay, dung, etc.) in cocks.

Origin of cock

3
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English cok “cock (of hay), shock (of grain)”; cognate with dialectal German Kocke “heap of hay or dung”; akin to Norwegian kok “heap, lump,” Old Norse kǫkkr “lump”

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use cock in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for cock (1 of 2)

cock1

/ (kɒk) /


noun
  1. the male of the domestic fowl

    • any other male bird

    • the male of certain other animals, such as the lobster

    • (as modifier): a cock sparrow

  1. a taboo slang word for penis

    • the hammer of a firearm

    • its position when the firearm is ready to be discharged

  2. British informal a friend, mate, or fellow

  3. a jaunty or significant tilting or turning upwards: a cock of the head

  4. British informal nonsense

verb
  1. (tr) to set the firing pin, hammer, or breech block of (a firearm) so that a pull on the trigger will release it and thus fire the weapon

  2. (tr) to set the shutter mechanism of (a camera) so that the shutter can be tripped by pressing the shutter-release button

  1. (tr sometimes foll by up) to raise in an alert or jaunty manner

  2. (intr) to stick or stand up conspicuously

Origin of cock

1
Old English cocc (referring to the male fowl; the development of C15 sense spout, tap, and other transferred senses is not clear), ultimately of imitative origin; related to Old Norse kokkr, French coq, Late Latin coccus

British Dictionary definitions for cock (2 of 2)

cock2

/ (kɒk) /


noun
  1. a small, cone-shaped heap of hay, straw, etc

verb
  1. (tr) to stack (hay, straw, etc) in such heaps

Origin of cock

2
C14 (in Old English, cocc is attested in place names): perhaps of Scandinavian origin; compare Norwegian kok, Danish dialect kok

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