cock Hear it!

cock¹ Definition

cock (käk)

noun

    1. the male of the chicken; rooster
    2. the male of certain other birds
  2. Archaic
    1. the crowing of a rooster, esp. at sunrise
    2. cockcrow
  3. a woodcock
  4. a weather vane in the shape of a rooster; weathercock
  5. a leader or chief, esp. one with some boldness or arrogance
  6. a faucet or valve for regulating the flow of a liquid or gas
    1. the hammer of a firearm
    2. the position of such a hammer when set for firing
  8. a tilting or turning upward, as of the eye or ear
  9. a jaunty, erect position the cock of a hat
  10. Slang, Vulgar the penis

Etymology: ME cok < OE coc & OFr coq, like Dan kok, ON kokkr, of echoic orig.

transitive verb

  1. to tilt or set (a hat, etc.) jauntily on one side
  2. to raise to an erect position a dog cocks his ears
  3. to tilt or turn (the eye or ear) toward something
    1. to set the hammer of (a gun) in firing position
    2. to set (a tripping device, as for the shutter of a camera) ready to be released
  5. to draw back (one's fist, arm, etc.) ready to strike

intransitive verb

  1. to assume an erect or tilted position
  2. Archaic to behave in a cocky way; strut

cock² Definition

cock (käk)

noun

a small, cone-shaped pile, as of hay

Etymology: ME cokke, akin to ON køkkr, Dan kok, a pile < IE *quqā- < base *gēu-: see cog

transitive verb

to pile in cocks

cock Synonyms

cock

n.

rooster, capon, cockerel; see chicken 1.

cock Usage Examples

Object

  • snoot: Also of course Iran is cocking a snoot at the US and Britain.
  • hat: They beat Harry Potter into a cocked hat, I'm afraid.
  • pistol: Blue; two cocked flintlock pistols in saltire proper.
  • hammer: Sir Arthur drew his revolver and cocked the hammer.
  • shutter: The exposure can be set only with the shutter cocked.

Converse of object

    Adjective modifier

      Modifies a noun

        Noun used with modifier

    cock Quotes

    And the Lord turned, and looked upon Peter. And Peter remembered the word of the Lord, how hehad said unto him,Before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice.

    —Bible (NewTestament)

    'öd!'said my mother,'what is all this storyabout?'ö'A Cock and a Bull,'said Yorick.

    —Sterne, Laurence

    The cock doth craw, the day doth daw, The channerin' worm doth chide.

    —Ballads

       We are na fou, we're nae that fou, But just a drappie in our e'e; The cock may craw, the day may daw, And ay we'll taste the barley bree.

    —Burns, Robert

    Beneath those rugged elms, that yew-tree's shade, Where heaves the turf in many a mouldering heap, Each in his narrow cell for ever laid, The rude forefathers of the hamlet sleep. The breezy call of incense-breathing Morn, The swallow twitt'ring from the straw-built shed, The cock's shrill clarion, or the echoing horn, No more shall rouse them from their lowly bed.

    —Gray,Thomas

    He was likea cock who thoughtthesun had risento hear him crow.

    —Eliot, George pseudonym of  MaryAnn Evans

       While the cock with lively din Scatters the rear of darkness thin, And to the stack or the barn door, Stoutly struts his dames before. 576

    —Milton,John

    Our cock won't fight.

    —Baron

    She understood how much louder a cockcan crow in its own farmyard then elsewhere.

    —Trollope, Anthony

       Patriotism is a lively sense of collective responsibility. Nationalism is a silly cock crowing on its own dunghill.

    —Aldington, Richard pseudonym of  Edward Godfree

    Crito, we oughtto offera cock to Asclepius. Seetoit, and don't forget.

    —Plato

    Jesus said unto him,Verily I say unto thee,That this night, before the cock crow, thou shalt deny me thrice. Peter said unto him,Though Ishould die with thee yet will I not deny thee. Likewise also said all the disciples.

    —Bible (NewTestament)

    My old man said,'Follow the van, Don't dilly-dally on the way!' Off went the cart with the home packed in it, I walked behind with my old cock linnet. But I dillied and dallied, dallied and dillied, Lost the van and don't know where to roam. You can't trust the'specials' like the old time 'coppers' When you can't find your way home.

    —Collins, Charles