Cowboy Meaning
/ˈkaʊˌbɔɪ/Definition, CEFR level A2, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
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Definition
nounA man who tends free-range cattle, especially in the American West.
nounA man who identifies with cowboy culture, including wearing a cowboy hat and being a fan of country and western music.
Sentence Examples
Do you know where I might find small cowboy boots?
A cowboy is driving cattle to the pasture.
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ rode his horse across the dusty prairie at sunset.
Word Origin & History
PIE word *gʷṓws From cow + boy. More on Wikipedia.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"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 […].”"
— 1899, Stephen Crane, chapter 1, in Twelve O'Clock:
"Besides cowboying he worked at a small sawmill that cut logs into "four slabs and a tie" and sold ties to the railroad."
— 1994, Sherry Robinson, El Malpais, Mt. Taylor, and the Zuni Mountains: a hiking guide and history:
"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."
— 2003, C. J. Hadley, Trappings of the Great Basin Buckaroo:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The ____ rode his horse across the dusty prairie at sunset.