| WORDS & EXPRESSIONS | |
|---|---|
| WORDS | |
| ant cow | aphid which yields a honey-like substance on which ants feed |
| sea cow | manatee |
 |
mature female member of the bovine family |
| female of various large animals such as the whale or elephant | |
| to brow-beat, intimidate | |
| cow bane | poisonous plant |
| cow berry | mountain cranberry |
| cowbell | bell hung around a cow's neck to indicate its whereabouts |
| cowbird | a blackbird |
| cowboy, cowgirl | person who herds cattle |
| cowcatcher | triangular frame at the front of a locomotive for clearing the track of obstructions |
| cow fish | type of fish with hornlike projections over the eyes |
| cowhand | person employed on a cattle ranch |
| cow herb | plant with pink flowers |
| cowherd | person who tends cows |
| cowhide | cowskin (also, what cows should do to avoid becoming this) |
| cow horse | cow pony |
| cow killer | large ant-like wasp |
| cow lick | tuft of hair growing in the opposite direction from the rest of the hair. |
| cowman | rancher |
| cow parsnip | tall plant having tiny, white flowers |
| cow pea | black-eyed pea |
| cow pie | cow dung |
| cow pilot | pintano, a fish |
| cowpoke | cowboy or cowgirl |
| cow pony | small horse used in herding cattle |
| cowpox | cow disease like smallpox |
| cowpuncher | cowboy or cowgirl |
| cow shark | large shark |
| cowshed | cow shelter |
| cowskin | cowhide |
| cowslip | English primrose |
| purple cow | drink concocted of grape juice, vanilla ice cream and sometimes milk. |
| EXPRESSIONS | |
| cash cow | a business or product which generates a steady or dependable flow of cash. |
| cow college | agricultural college |
| cow town | small town in a cattle raising area |
| have a cow | have a fit |
| holy cow | what the devil! |
| how now, brown cow | In the play, My Fair Lady, Professor Higgins gives cockney Eliza Doolittle elocution lessons. She has to repeat this phrase over and over and... |
| mad cow disease | Creutzfeldt-Jakob, a brain-wasting disease, which humans can catch from eating infected beef |
| sacred cow | person, project or product considered untouchable. |
| the cow jumped
the moon |
"Hey diddle diddle, the cat and the fiddle. The cow jumped over the moon. The little dog laughed to see such sport. And the dish ran away with the spoon." Queen Elizabeth I of England was called "The Cat" because she fiddled with her Cabinet ministers like mice. The cow, moon and her lapdog were characters in these court charades. The dish was Elizabeth's Serving Lady and the spoon the Royal Taster. When the latter two eloped, Elizabeth had them captured and confined to the Tower of London. |
| till the cows come home | for a long but indefinite time |
| A man won't buy the cow when he can get the milk for free. | What parents tell daughters when they begin to date. |
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