calf
English
Pronunciation
- (Received Pronunciation) enPR: käf, IPA(key): /kɑːf/
- (General American, Canada) enPR: kăf, IPA(key): /kæf/
Audio (US) (file)
- (General Australian, New Zealand) IPA(key): /kɐːf/
- (Northern England, Scotland, Wales, Ireland) IPA(key): /kaf/
- (dialectal, obsolete) IPA(key): /keɪf/[1]
- Rhymes: -ɑːf, -æf
Etymology 1
A cow and calf
From Middle English calf, kælf, kelf, from Old English cælf, ċealf;also cognate with German Kalb (“calf”), Dutch kalf (“calf”) and Danish kalv (“calf”), from Proto-Germanic *kalbaz, further etymology unknown[2].
Noun
calf (plural calves or (nonstandard) calfs)
- A young cow or bull.
- Leather made of the skin of the calf; especially, a fine, light-coloured leather used in bookbinding.
- A young deer, elephant, seal, whale or giraffe (also used of some other animals).
- A chunk of ice broken from a larger glacier, ice shelf, or iceberg.
- 1915 (published), 1848 (first written), Elisha Kent Kane, Adrift in the Arctic Ice Pack
- Our swell ceases with this wind, and the floes seem disposed to come together again; but the days of winter have passed by, and the interposing calves prevent the apposition of the edges
- 1915 (published), 1848 (first written), Elisha Kent Kane, Adrift in the Arctic Ice Pack
- A small island, near a larger island.
- the Calf of Man
- A cabless railroad engine.
- (informal, dated) An awkward or silly boy or young man; any silly person; a dolt.
- 1627, Michaell Drayton [i.e., Michael Drayton], “Nimphidia. The Court of Fayrie.”, in The Battaile of Agincourt. […], London: […] A[ugustine] M[atthews] for VVilliam Lee, […], published 1631, OCLC 1011821086:
- some silly, doating, brainless calf
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Synonyms
- bullet (rare); cowlet, cowling; moggy (Midlands, now rare)
Derived terms
- box calf
- bull calf
- bull-calf
- bum calf
- calfless
- calf love
- calfskin
- cow-calf
- cow calf
- divinity calf
- elephant calf
- golden calf
- heifer calf
- killcalf
- kill the fatted calf
- law calf
- mooncalf
- moon-calf
- reindeer calf
- Russia calf
- sea-calf
- sea calf
- tree calf
- water buffalo calf
Related terms
- calve
Translations
young cow or bull
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young deer, elephant, seal or whale (also used of some other animals)
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chunk of ice broken off of a larger glacier, ice shelf, or iceberg
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small island beside another one
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
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See also
- bull
- cow
- veal
Etymology 2
From Middle English calf, kalf, from Old Norse kalfi, possibly derived from the same Germanic root as English calf (“young cow”) (above). Cognate with Icelandic kálfi (“calf of the leg”).
Noun
calf (plural calves)
- (anatomy) The back of the leg below the knee.
- The muscle in the back of the leg below the knee.
- 1988, Steve Holman, "Christian Conquers Columbus", Ironman, 47 (6): 28-34.
- Sure, his calves are a little weak, but the rest of his physique is so overwhelming, he should place high.
- 1988, Steve Holman, "Christian Conquers Columbus", Ironman, 47 (6): 28-34.
Derived terms
- calf bone
- calfless
- calf raise
Translations
anatomy: back of the leg below the knee
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muscle in the back of the leg below the knee
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- The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Translations to be checked
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References
- Bingham, Caleb (1808), “Improprieties in Pronunciation, common among the people of New-England”, in The Child's Companion; Being a Conciſe Spelling-book […] , 12th edition, Boston: Manning & Loring, OCLC 671561968, page 74.
- Kroonen, Guus (2013), “*kalbiz-”, in Etymological Dictionary of Proto-Germanic (Leiden Indo-European Etymological Dictionary Series; 11), Leiden, Boston: Brill, →ISBN, page 278
Anagrams
- CLAF, FLAC
Middle Dutch
Etymology
From Old Dutch calf, from Proto-Germanic *kalbaz.
Noun
calf n
- calf
Inflection
This noun needs an inflection-table template.
Descendants
- Dutch: kalf
- Limburgish: kalf
Further reading
- “calf”, in Vroegmiddelnederlands Woordenboek, 2000
- Verwijs, E.; Verdam, J. (1885–1929), “calf”, in Middelnederlandsch Woordenboek, The Hague: Martinus Nijhoff, →ISBN
Middle English
Etymology 1
From Old English cælf, Anglian form of ċealf, from Proto-Germanic *kalbaz.
Alternative forms
- chalf, chalve, chelve, kelf, kalf, calfe
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /kalf/, /tʃalf/
Noun
calf (plural calver(e) or calveren or calves)
- calf (cow that has not fully matured)
- c. 1395, John Wycliffe, John Purvey [et al.], transl., Bible (Wycliffite Bible (later version), MS Lich 10.), published c. 1410, Apocalips 4:7, page 118v, column 2; republished as Wycliffe's translation of the New Testament, Lichfield: Bill Endres, 2010:
- ⁊ þe firſte beeſte .· liyk a lioun / ⁊ þe ſecounde beeſte .· lijk a calf / ⁊ þe þꝛidde beeſte .· hauynge a face as of a man / ⁊ þe fourþe beeſte .· liyk an egle fleynge
- And the first beast [was] like a lion; and the second beast [was] like a calf; and the third beast had a face like a human; and the fourth beast [was] like an eagle flying.
- A representation of a calf; something that looks like a calf.
- fawn (deer that has not fully matured)
- (rare) Veal; the meat of calves.
Descendants
- English: calf
- Scots: cauf, cawf, caff, calf
- Yola: callef, calef, calluf
References
- “calf, n.(1).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-07-17.
Etymology 2
From Old Norse kalfi.
Alternative forms
- calfe
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈkalf(ə)/
Noun
calf (plural calves)
- calf (part of the leg).
Descendants
- English: calf
- Scots: cauf
References
- “calf, n.(2).”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-07-17.
Old Dutch
Etymology
From Proto-Germanic *kalbaz.
Noun
calf n
- calf
Descendants
- Middle Dutch: calf
- Dutch: kalf
- Limburgish: kalf
Further reading
- “kalf”, in Oudnederlands Woordenboek, 2012
Scots
Etymology 1
From Middle English calf (“young cow”).
Noun
calf
- Alternative form of cauf (“calf (young cow)”)
Etymology 2
From Middle English caf, caff, kaf, kaff, alternative forms of chaf.
Noun
calf
- Alternative form of caff