cowboy

UK /ˈkaʊˌbɔɪ/ US /ˈkaʊˌbɔɪ/

noun 5verb 1

Definitions

noun

A man who tends free-range cattle, especially in the American West.

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 […].”

A man who identifies with cowboy culture, including wearing a cowboy hat and being a fan of country and western music.

A person who engages in reckless behavior, especially for the purpose of showing off.

A dishonest or incompetent independent tradesman.

A playing card of king rank.

verb

To work as a cowboy, herding cattle.

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

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

Collocations

ADJ.

against, bad, better, black, last, small

The small cowboy rode his horse across the dusty prairie every morning.

VERB + COWBOY

boots, caution, find, make, play, played, see, wearing

He played cowboy with his friends in the backyard every afternoon.

COWBOY + NOUN

cattle, hat, indians, movie, roles, salesmen, saloon, tv

He wore a cowboy hat to the rodeo and won first prize in the roping competition.

PREP.

off, on, out, than, with

The old cowboy on his horse rode across the dusty desert valley.

ADV.

often, only, quickly, really, usually

The old cowboy usually spent his mornings fixing the ranch fence before breakfast.

Thesaurus

Synonyms

noun — a hired hand who tends cattle and performs other duties on h

Antonyms

Idioms & Phrases

cowboy up

To deal with hardship with toughness and without complaining; man up.

COWBOY UP!! Be a man, son. Walk it off, says the coach.

cowboy shower

A simple shower in a horse trailer's living area to remove the dirt and grime associated with working around livestock.

A “cowboy” shower usually means a shower set up in the horse area of a trailer. Cowboy showers may be warm or cold water.

all hat and no cowboy

Full of big talk but lacking action, power, or substance; pretentious.

Don't waste your time with him - he's all hat and no cowboy.

cowboy killer

A cigarette.

Example Bank

Wiktionary

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

Wiktionary

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

Wiktionary

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.

Wiktionary

Do you know where I might find small cowboy boots?

Tatoeba · #38134

A cowboy is driving cattle to the pasture.

Tatoeba · #63790

Usage Notes

i Register

In some senses, cowboy is marked as informal, slang, British. Watch for register when choosing this word.

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