beefer
English
[edit]Etymology
[edit]Pronunciation
[edit]Audio (General Australian): (file) - Rhymes: -iːfə(ɹ)
Noun
[edit]beefer (plural beefers)
- A cow used for beef and not milk.
- 1916, Royal Association of British Dairy Farmers, Journal, volumes 30-32, page 89:
- We usually reckon if a cow does not respond to good food at the pail, that she is "putting it on her back"; that is, she fattens, and is thus more of a beefer than a milker, and should not be retained for milking purpose.
- (slang) A police informer.
- (slang) A person with a beefy build.
- 2010, Vincenzo Spiaggi, A Tribute to His Heroes, page 325:
- "I'll bet. Well, is she? Fat, I mean."
"Yeah. They [sic] gal's a real beefer."
Synonyms
[edit]- (police informer): See Thesaurus:informant
References
[edit]- Wright, Joseph (1898) The English Dialect Dictionary[1], volume 1, Oxford: Oxford University Press, page 221