cowboy

See also: Cowboy and cow-boy

English

Cowboys

Etymology

cow +‎ boy

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkaʊˌbɔɪ/

Noun

cowboy (plural cowboys)

1. A man who tends free-range cattle, especially in the American West.
   • 1899, Stephen Crane, chapter 1, in Twelve O'Clock:

     There was some laughter, and Roddle was left free to expand his ideas on the periodic visits of cowboys to the town. “Mason Rickets, he had ten big punkins a-sittin' in front of his store, an' them fellers from the Upside-down-F ranch shot 'em up […].”

2. A man who identifies with cowboy culture, including wearing a cowboy hat and being a fan of country and western music.
3. (informal) A person who engages in reckless behavior, especially for the purpose of showing off.
4. (Britain, informal) A dishonest and/or incompetent independent tradesman.
5. (card games, slang) A playing card of king rank.

Related terms

• cowman

Derived terms

• cowboys and Indians
• rhinestone cowboy

Coordinate terms

• cowgirl

Hypernyms

• cowhand
• cowperson
• cowpoke

Translations

person who tends cattle

• Albanian: lopçar m
• Arabic: رَعَوِيّ الْبَقَر‎ m (raʿawiyy al-baqar), بَقّار‎ m (baqqār)
• Armenian: կովբոյ (hy) (kovboy)
• Belarusian: каўбо́й m (kaŭbój)
• Bengali: রাখাল (bn) (rakhal)
• Bulgarian: каубо́й (kaubój)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 牛仔 (zh) (niúzǎi)

• Czech: kovboj m
• Danish: cowboy c
• Esperanto: vakero
• Finnish: cowboy (fi) (in Am. West); karjapaimen (fi) (in general)
• French: cow-boy (fr), cowboy (fr), vacher (fr)
• German: Cowboy (de) m
• Greek: αγελαδάρης (el) m (ageladáris)
• Hebrew: בּוֹקֵר‎ (he) m (boqér)
• Hindi: काउबॉय m (kāubŏy), गोपाल (hi) m (gopāl)
• Irish: buachaill bó m
• Italian: mandriano m, vaccaio m, vaccaro m
• Japanese: カウボーイ (kaubōi)
• Korean: 카우보이 (ko) (kauboi)
• Macedonian: ка́убој m (káuboj) (of American cowboys), го́ведар m (góvedar)
• Malay: koboi
• Maori: kaupoai, kaupoai

• Marathi: काउबॉय m (kāubŏy)
• Navajo: akałii
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: cowboy m

  Nynorsk: cowboy m

• Persian: گاوچران‎ (fa) (gâvčerân), کابوی‎ (fa) (kâboy)
• Portuguese: vaqueiro (pt), caubói (pt) m
• Romanian: văcar (ro) m
• Russian: ковбо́й (ru) m (kovbój) (of American cowboys), пасту́х (ru) m (pastúx)
• Scottish Gaelic: gille-cruidh m
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ка̀убој m

  Roman: kàuboj (sh) m

• Slovak: ^{(please verify)} kraviar m, ^{(please verify)} cowboy m
• Spanish: vaquero m, gaucho (es) m, huaso (es) m, llanero (es)
• Swedish: cowboy (sv) c, kobojsare c
• Thai: คาวบอย (kaaoboi)
• Turkish: kovboy (tr)
• Ukrainian: ковбо́й (uk) m (kovbój)
• Urdu: کاؤبای‎ m (kāubāy), گوپال‎ m (gopāl)
• Vietnamese: cao bồi (vi)
• Welsh: cowboi m
• Yiddish: קאַובוי‎ m (kauboy), קאַובאָי‎ m (kauboy)

man who identifies with cowboy culture

• Finnish: cowboy-fani
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: cowboy m

  Nynorsk: cowboy m

• Portuguese: caubói (pt) m, peão (pt) m

a dishonest and incompetent worker

• Greek: ατζαμής (el) m (atzamís)

• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: cowboy m

  Nynorsk: cowboy m

one who engages in reckless behavior

• Finnish: rämäpää
• Portuguese: caubói (pt) m, machão m

• Vietnamese: cao bồi (vi)

See also

• cattleman
• buckaroo

Verb

cowboy (third-person singular simple present cowboys, present participle cowboying, simple past and past participle cowboyed)

1. (intransitive) To work as a cowboy, herding cattle.
   • 1994, Sherry Robinson, El Malpais, Mt. Taylor, and the Zuni Mountains: a hiking guide and history

     Besides cowboying he worked at a small sawmill that cut logs into "four slabs and a tie" and sold ties to the railroad.

   • 1995, American Cowboy (volume 2, number 4, Nov-Dec 1995, page 26)

     Derwood Bailey cowboyed for 50 cents a day, a noon meal, and a gallon of oats for his horse.

   • 2003, C. J. Hadley, Trappings of the Great Basin Buckaroo

     I still had never ridden or cowboyed, and I wanted to learn something about it. I'd been making the damn saddles for years but didn't know how to use them.

References

• Weisenberg, Michael (2000) The Official Dictionary of Poker. MGI/Mike Caro University. ISBN 978-1880069523

---

Finnish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkɑu̯boi̯/

Noun

cowboy

1. cowboy (person who attends cattle, especially in the American West)

Declension

Inflection of cowboy (Kotus type 21/rosé, no gradation)
nominative		cowboy	cowboyt
genitive		cowboyn	cowboyiden cowboyitten
partitive		cowboyta	cowboyita
illative		cowboyhin cowboyhyn	cowboyihin
		singular	plural
nominative		cowboy	cowboyt
accusative	nom.	cowboy	cowboyt
	gen.	cowboyn
genitive		cowboyn	cowboyiden cowboyitten
partitive		cowboyta	cowboyita
inessive		cowboyssa	cowboyissa
elative		cowboysta	cowboyista
illative		cowboyhin cowboyhyn	cowboyihin
adessive		cowboylla	cowboyilla
ablative		cowboylta	cowboyilta
allative		cowboylle	cowboyille
essive		cowboyna	cowboyina
translative		cowboyksi	cowboyiksi
instructive		—	cowboyin
abessive		cowboytta	cowboyitta
comitative		—	cowboyineen

Synonyms

• lehmipoika (humorous)
• karjapaimen (person who attends cattle in general)

---

French

Noun

cowboy m (plural cowboys)

1. Alternative spelling of cow-boy

---

Norwegian Bokmål

Etymology

From English

Noun

cowboy m (definite singular cowboyen, indefinite plural cowboyer, definite plural cowboyene)

1. a cowboy (most senses)

   cowboyer og indianere - cowboys and Indians

References

• “cowboy” in The Bokmål Dictionary.

---

Norwegian Nynorsk

Etymology

From English

Noun

cowboy m (definite singular cowboyen, indefinite plural cowboyar, definite plural cowboyane)

1. a cowboy (most senses)

   cowboyar og indianarar - cowboys and Indians

References

• “cowboy” in The Nynorsk Dictionary.

---

Spanish

Noun

cowboy m (plural cowboys)

1. cowboy

---

Swedish

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈkaʊ̯bɔj/

Noun

cowboy c

1. cowboy

Declension

Declension of cowboy
	Singular		Plural
	Indefinite	Definite	Indefinite	Definite
Nominative	cowboy	cowboyen	cowboyer	cowboyerna
Genitive	cowboys	cowboyens	cowboyers	cowboyernas

Usage notes

The plural form could also be cowboys.