Heifer definition
A nine month old female cow with no offspring is an example of a heifer.
1611 And the LORD spake unto Moses and unto Aaron, saying, This is the ordinance of the law which the LORD hath commanded, saying, Speak unto the children of Israel, that they bring thee a red heifer without spot, wherein is no blemish, and upon which never came yoke — Numbers 19:1-2 KJV.
Other Word Forms
Noun
Origin of heifer
- Middle English from Old English hēahfore perə-1 in Indo-European roots
From American Heritage Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition
- Middle English hayfare, hayfre, from Old English heahfore, hēahfre, compound of (1) *heag- (“mating”) (compare dialectal German Hagen, Hegel (“breeding bull”), Middle Dutch haechdroese (“genitals”), Old English hagan (“id.”)), from Proto-Indo-European *ḱak- (“to be able, help”) (compare Sanskrit [script?] (śaknóti, “to be able”), Avestan [script?] (sak-, “to agree”)) and (2) -fore (compare English elver, fieldfare, Old English sceolfor (“cormorant”)).
From Wiktionary