51Թ

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calf

1

[ kaf, kahf ]

noun

plural calves
  1. the young of the domestic cow or other bovine animal.
  2. the young of certain other mammals, as elephants, seals, and whales.
  3. Informal. an awkward, silly boy or man.
  4. a mass of ice detached from a glacier, iceberg, or floe.


calf

2

[ kaf, kahf ]

noun

plural calves
  1. the fleshy part of the back of the human leg below the knee.

calf

1

/ ɑː /

noun

  1. the young of cattle, esp domestic cattle vituline
  2. the young of certain other mammals, such as the buffalo, elephant, giraffe, and whale
  3. a large piece of floating ice detached from an iceberg, etc
  4. kill the fatted calf
    to celebrate lavishly, esp as a welcome
  5. another name for calfskin
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

calf

2

/ ɑː /

noun

  1. the thick fleshy part of the back of the leg between the ankle and the knee sural
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Other 51Թ Forms

  • · adjective
  • · adjective
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of calf1

First recorded before 900; Middle English, Old English cealf, calf; cognate with Old Saxon kalf, Old Norse kalfr, Old High German kalb, from Germanic kalboz

Origin of calf2

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English, from Old Norse kalfi
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51Թ History and Origins

Origin of calf1

Old English cealf; related to Old Norse ڰ, Gothic 첹ō, Old High German kalba

Origin of calf2

C14: from Old Norse kalfi
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Idioms and Phrases

  1. in calf, (of a cow or other animal having calves) pregnant.
  2. kill the fatted calf, to prepare an elaborate feast in welcome or celebration.

More idioms and phrases containing calf

see kill the fatted calf ; puppy (calf) love .
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

Mrs Harbron, who has type 1 diabetes, had gone to the A&E department at the hospital complaining of numbness in her foot and severe calf pain.

From

Since joining the Lakers, people close to the team have praised Doncic for his work to get healthy after missing 22 games because of a calf strain.

From

The Basques wanted him to stay another season, but Odegaard was beckoned back by Zidane to Madrid, where he started Real's first two games before struggling with a calf injury.

From

Adding to their vulnerability is their slow reproductive cycle - they mature between six and 10 years of age and females typically give birth to just one calf every two to three years.

From

His legs are “still messed up” now, he told Bensinger, pulling up a pant leg to reveal a gnarly scarred calf.

From

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Related 51Թs

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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