Calf

• POS: Noun

CIDE DICTIONARY

Calf, n. [OE. calf, kelf, AS. cealf; akin to D. kalf, G. kalb, Icel. kālfr, Sw. kalf, Dan. kalv, Goth. kalbō; cf. Skr. garbha fetus, young, Gr. , Skr grabh to seize, conceive, Ir. colpa, colpach, a calf. √222.].

•  The young of the cow, or of the Bovine family of quadrupeds. Also, the young of some other mammals, as of the elephant, rhinoceros, hippopotamus, and whale.  [1913 Webster]
•  Leather made of the skin of the calf; especially, a fine, light-colored leather used in bookbinding; as, to bind books in calf.  [1913 Webster]
•  An awkward or silly boy or young man; any silly person; a dolt.  [1913 Webster]

  "Some silly, doting, brainless calf."  [1913 Webster]
•  A small island near a larger; as, the Calf of Man.  [1913 Webster]
•  A small mass of ice set free from the submerged part of a glacier or berg, and rising to the surface.  Kane.  [1913 Webster]
•  The fleshy hinder part of the leg below the knee.  [1913 Webster]

Calf's-foot jelly, jelly made from the feet of calves. The gelatinous matter of the feet is extracted by boiling, and is flavored with sugar, essences, etc.

OXFORD DICTIONARY

Calf, n. (pl. calves)
1 a young bovine animal, used esp. of domestic cattle.
2 the young of other animals, e.g. elephant, deer, and whale.
3 Naut. a floating piece of ice detached from an iceberg.

Idiom

calf-love romantic attachment or affection between adolescents. in (or with) calf (of a cow) pregnant.

Derivative

calfhood n. calfish adj. calflike adj.

Calf, n. (pl. calves) the fleshy hind part of the human leg below the knee.

Derivative

-calved adj. (in comb.).

Etymology

ME f. ON k{aacute}lfi, of unkn. orig.

THESAURUS

Calf

Brahman, Dry Ice, Indian buffalo, ankle, aurochs, bayonet legs, beef, beef cattle, beeves, berg, birdling, bison, bossy, bovine, bovine animal, bowlegs, buffalo, bull, bullock, carabao, catling, cattle, chick, chickling, chicky, cnemis, colt, cow, critter, cryosphere, cub, dairy cattle, dairy cow, dogie, drumstick, duckling, fawn, firn, fledgling, floe, foal, foreleg, frazil, frozen water, fryer, gamb, gambrel, gigot, glaciation, glacier, glacieret, glaze, glazed frost, gosling, granular snow, ground ice, growler, ham, heifer, hind leg, hock, hornless cow, ice, ice banner, ice barrier, ice belt, ice cave, ice cubes, ice dike, ice field, ice floe, ice foot, ice front, ice island, ice needle, ice pack, ice pinnacle, ice raft, ice sheet, iceberg, icefall, icequake, icicle, jamb, jokul, kid, kine, kit, kitten, knee, lamb, lambkin, leg, leppy, limb, litter, lolly, maverick, milch cow, milcher, milk cow, milker, muley cow, muley head, musk-ox, neat, nest, nestling, neve, nieve penitente, ox, oxen, pack ice, piglet, pigling, podite, polliwog, popliteal space, pullet, pup, puppy, scissor-legs, serac, shank, shelf ice, shin, shoat, sleet, slob, sludge, snow ice, snowberg, steer, stems, stirk, stot, stumps, tadpole, tarsus, trotters, weaner, whelp, wisent, yak, yeanling, yearling, zebu

ROGET THESAURUS

Calf

Infant

N infant, babe, baby, babe in arms, nurseling, suckling, yearling, weanling, papoose, bambino, kid, vagitus, child, bairn, little one, brat, chit, pickaninny, urchin, bantling, bratling, elf, youth, boy, lad, stripling, youngster, youngun, younker, callant, whipster, whippersnapper, whiffet, schoolboy, hobbledehoy, hopeful, cadet, minor, master, scion, sap, seedling, tendril, olive branch, nestling, chicken, larva, chrysalis, tadpole, whelp, cub, pullet, fry, callow, codlin, codling, foetus, calf, colt, pup, foal, kitten, lamb, lambkin, aurelia, caterpillar, cocoon, nymph, nympha, orphan, pupa, staddle, girl, lass, lassie, wench, miss, damsel, demoiselle, maid, maiden, virgin, hoyden, infantine, infantile, puerile, boyish, girlish, childish, babyish, kittenish, baby, newborn, unfledged, new-fledged, callow, in the cradle, in swaddling clothes, in long clothes, in arms, in leading strings, at the breast, in one's teens.

Animal

N animal, animal kingdom, fauna, brute creation, beast, brute, creature, critter, wight, created being, creeping thing, living thing, dumb animal, dumb creature, zoophyte, mammal, bird, reptile, amphibian, fish, crustacean, shellfish, mollusk, worm, insect, arthropod, microbe, microbe, animalcule, alligator, crocodile, saurian, dinosaur (extinct), snake, serpent, viper, eft, asp, aspick, frog, toad, trout, bass, tuna, muskelunge, sailfish, sardine, mackerel, ant, mosquito, bee, honeybee, tardigrade, spider, biped, quadruped, webfoot, flocks and herds, live stock, domestic animals, wild animals, game, ferae naturae, beasts of the field, fowls of the air, denizens of the sea, black game, black grouse, blackcock, duck, grouse, plover, rail, snipe, horse, cattle, kine, ox, bull, bullock, cow, milch cow, calf, heifer, shorthorn, sheep, lamb, lambkin, ewe, ram, tup, pig, swine, boar, hog, sow, steer, stot, tag, teg, bison, buffalo, yak, zebu, dog, cat, dog, hound, pup, puppy, whelp, cur, mongrel, house dog, watch dog, sheep dog, shepherd's dog, sporting dog, fancy dog, lap dog, toy dog, bull dog, badger dog, mastiff, blood hound, grey hound, stag hound, deer hound, fox hound, otter hound, harrier, beagle, spaniel, pointer, setter, retriever, Newfoundland, water dog, water spaniel, pug, poodle, turnspit, terrier, fox terrier, Skye terrier, Dandie Dinmont, collie, feline, puss, pussy, grimalkin, gib cat, tom cat, fox, Reynard, vixen, stag, deer, hart, buck, doe, roe, caribou, coyote, elk, moose, musk ox, sambar, bird, poultry, fowl, cock, hen, chicken, chanticleer, partlet, rooster, dunghill cock, barn door fowl, feathered tribes, feathered songster, singing bird, dicky bird, canary, warbler, finch, aberdevine, cushat, cygnet, ringdove, siskin, swan, wood pigeon, vermin, varmint, pest, animal, zoological equine, bovine, vaccine, canine, feline, fishy, piscatory, piscatorial, molluscous, vermicular, gallinaceous, rasorial, solidungulate, soliped.

Fool

N fool, idiot, tomfool, wiseacre, simpleton, witling, dizzard, donkey, ass, ninny, ninnyhammer, chowderhead, chucklehead, dolt, booby, Tom Noddy, looby, hoddy-doddy, noddy, nonny, noodle, nizy, owl, goose, goosecap, imbecile, gaby, radoteur, nincompoop, badaud, zany, trifler, babbler, pretty fellow, natural, niais, child, baby, infant, innocent, milksop, sop, oaf, lout, loon, lown, dullard, doodle, calf, colt, buzzard, block, put, stick, stock, numps, tony, bull head, dunderhead, addlehead, blockhead, dullhead, loggerhead, jolthead, jolterhead, beetlehead, beetlebrain, grosshead, muttonhead, noodlehead, giddyhead, numbskull, thickskull, lackbrain, shallowbrain, dimwit, halfwit, lackwit, dunderpate, lunkhead sawney, gowk, clod, clod-hopper, clod-poll, clot-poll, clot-pate, bull calf, gawk, Gothamite, lummox, rube, men of Boeotia, wise men of Gotham, un sot a triple etage, sot, jobbernowl, changeling, mooncalf, gobemouche, dotard, driveler, old fogey, old woman, crock, crone, grandmother, cotquean, henhussy, incompetent (insanity), greenhorn, dunce, lubber, madman, one who will not set the Thames on fire, one who did not invent gunpowder, qui n'a pas invente' la poudre, no conjuror, fortuna favet fatuis, les fous font les festinas et les sages les mangen, nomina stultorum parietibus harrent, stultorum plena sunt omnia.