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5 dictionary results for: cock a snook
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

cock

2   [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)
2. to stand or stick up conspicuously.
3. Scot. and New England. to strut; swagger; put on airs of importance.
–noun
4. the act of turning the head, a hat, etc., up or to one side in a jaunty or significant way.
5. the position of anything thus placed.
—Idiom
6. cock a snook. snook 2 (def. 2).
Origin:
1705–15; prob. special use of cock 1
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1) - Cite This Source - Share This

snook

2   [snook, snook]
–noun
1. a gesture of defiance, disrespect, or derision.
—Idiom
2. cock a snook or cock one's snook, to thumb the nose: a painter who cocks a snook at traditional techniques.
Also, cock a snoot.

Origin:
1875–80; orig. uncert.
Dictionary.com Unabridged (v 1.1)
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2006.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
cock 1     (kŏk)  Pronunciation Key 
n.  
    1. An adult male chicken; a rooster.
    2. An adult male of various other birds.
    3. The hammer of a firearm.
    4. The position of the hammer of a firearm when ready for firing.
  2. A weathervane shaped like a rooster; a weathercock.
  3. A leader or chief.
  4. A faucet or valve by which the flow of a liquid or gas can be regulated.
    1. The hammer of a firearm.
    2. The position of the hammer of a firearm when ready for firing.
  6. A tilting or jaunty turn upward: the cock of a hat.
  7. Vulgar Slang The penis.
  8. Archaic The characteristic cry of a rooster early in the morning.
v.   cocked, cock·ing, cocks

v.   tr.
  1. To set the hammer of (a firearm) in a position ready for firing.
  2. To set (a device, such as a camera shutter) in a position ready for use.
  3. To tilt or turn up or to one side, usually in a jaunty or alert manner: cocked an eyebrow in response to a silly question.
  4. To raise in preparation to throw or hit: cocked the bat before swinging at the pitch.
v.   intr.
  1. To set the hammer of a firearm in a position ready for firing.
  2. To turn or stick up.
  3. To strut; swagger.

[Middle English cok, from Old English cocc, probably from Late Latin coccus, from coco, a cackling, of imitative origin.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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American Heritage Dictionary - Cite This Source - Share This
snook 2     (snŏŏk, snōōk)  Pronunciation Key 
n.   A gesture of derision or defiance.

[Origin unknown.]
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2006 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
Cite This Source
American Heritage Dictionary of Idioms - Cite This Source - Share This

cock a snook

Thumb one's nose, as in As soon as the teacher turned her back, the boys cocked a snook at her. This expression was first recorded in 1791 and the precise source of snook, here used in the sense of "a derisive gesture," has been lost. It is more widely used in Britain but is not unknown in America.


The American Heritage® Dictionary of Idioms by Christine Ammer.
Copyright © 1997 by The Christine Ammer 1992 Trust. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.
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