/kɒk/
Translation
A rude word for part of the male body. The old meaning, a male chicken, survives in "cockerel" and in old stories, but a modern speaker almost always means the other one. Medium strength. Its harmless British relative is "cock-up", a bad mistake. Recognise it, do not use it.
Word origin
From Old English cocc, the male bird, named after its call. The rude sense grew out of the same word.
- Origin
- Old English
- Root
- cocc
Examples
hens.
The old meaning: a male chicken. Safe, but most people now say "cockerel" to avoid the other sense.
cocked booking .
To "cock up" is to make a mess of something. British, and far milder than the noun.
-.
A "cock-up" is a bad mistake. You will hear this on the news; the rude noun you will not.
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