heifer

English

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English heyfre, hayfre, heyfer, from Old English hēahfore, hēahfru, of disputed origin; see the Old English entry for more discussion.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈhɛfə(ɹ)/, /ˈhɛfɚ/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɛfə(ɹ)

Noun

heifer (plural heifers)

1. A young female cow, (particularly) one over one year old but which has not calved.

   Coordinate terms: heiferette, cow, calf, bull, bullock

   • 1611, The Holy Bible, […] (King James Version), London: […] Robert Barker, […], →OCLC, Numbers 19:1–2:

     And the Lord ſpake vnto Moſes and vnto Aaron, ſaying, This is the ordinance of the Law, which the Lord hath commaunded, ſaying, Speak vnto the childꝛen of Iſrael, that they bꝛing thee a red heifer without ſpot, wherein is no blemiſh, and vpon which neuer came yoke.

   • c. 1610–1611 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The Winters Tale”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act I, scene ii], page 278:

     We muſt be neat; not neat, but cleanly, Captaine: / And yet the Steere, the Heycfer^[sic], and the Calfe, / Are all call'd Neat.

   • 1769, Firishta, translated by Alexander Dow, Tales translated from the Persian of Inatulla of Delhi, volume I, Dublin: P. and W. Wilson et al., page iv:

     The breath of the mountain heifer was fragrant as the gales of Sirendiep, by feeding on ſpicy herbs.

2. (obsolete) A wife.
   • 1609 December (first performance), Beniamin Ionson [i.e., Ben Jonson], “Epicoene, or The Silent Woman. A Comœdie. […]”, in The Workes of Beniamin Ionson (First Folio), London: […] Will[iam] Stansby, published 1616, →OCLC, Act II(please specify the scene number in lowercase Roman numerals), page 549:

     Her, whom I shall choose for my heicfar.

3. (informal, derogatory) A cow as in an unattractive or unpleasant woman.
   • 1853, T.C. Haliburton, Sam Slick's Wise Saws, volume II, page 282:

     I have half a mind to marry that heifer, tho' wives are bothersome critters when you have too many of them.

   • 2000, Mystikal, Shake Ya Ass:

     Stop your crying, heifer, I don't need all that, I got a job for you, the braided-up pimp is back!

   • 2001, Glenda Howard, Cita's World:

     My hand was aching to slap that silly heifer. I told her to take her trifling ass down to Burger King and get herself a job flipping burgers...

Derived terms

• heiferbud, heifer-bud
• heifer dust
• heiferhood
• heifer paddock, heifer-paddock
• heifer yearling
• Mullingar heifer
• plow with one's heifer, plough with one's heifer

Translations

young cow

• Abkhaz: ақабла (akabla)
• Albanian: viçoke (sq) f, mëzatore (sq) f, mështjerrë (sq) f
• Arabic: عِجْل (ar) m (ʕijl) (not distinguished from “calf”), عِجْلَة f (ʕijla) (rare)
• Aramaic:

  Syriac: ܥܶܓܠܬܳܐ f (ʿeglatā), ܐܰܪܘܢܺܝܬܳܐ f (ʾarwanītā)

• Armenian: երինջ (hy) (erinǰ)
• Aromanian: giuncã f
• Assamese: চেউৰী (seuri)
• Azerbaijani: düyə
• Bashkir: тана (tana)
• Bulgarian: юни́ца (bg) f (juníca)
• Czech: jalovice (cs) f
• Danish: kvie (da) c
• Dutch: vaars (nl)
• Esperanto: bovidino, guno
• Estonian: mullikas (et)
• Faroese: kvíga f
• Finnish: hieho (fi)
• French: génisse (fr) f
• Gagauz: düvä
• Galician: becerra (gl) f, xuvenca f, vitela (gl) f
• German: Färse (de) f, (Austria, Bavaria) Kalbin (de) f, (archaic) Kalbe (de) f, Queene f
• Gothic: 𐌺𐌰𐌻𐌱𐍉 f (kalbō)
• Greek: δαμαλίδα (el) f (damalída), αγελαδίτσα f (ageladítsa)

  Ancient: δάμαλις f (dámalis)

• Hungarian: üsző (hu)
• Icelandic: kvíga (is) f
• Ingrian: lähtömä
• Irish: bearach m, bodóg f, colann f, collaid f, seafaid f
• Italian: giovenca (it) f, scottona f
• Khowar: منس m, أوزيتو f
• Kikuyu: mori class 9/10
• Komi-Zyrian: кукань (kukań)
• Kurdish:

  Northern Kurdish: nagon (ku) f

• Latin: vitula f, iūnix f, vaccula f
• Latvian: tele f
• Maasai: entawuo f
• Macedonian: јуница f (junica)
• Malay: heifer
• Maori: hewha, kūao kau uha
• Mari:

  Eastern Mari: туна (tuna), ишаньык (išańyk), ушкалаш (uškalaš)

  Western Mari: туна (tuna)

• Mazanderani: تلم (telem)
• Middle English: heyfre
• Norman: geniche f (Jersey), géniche f (Jersey)
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: kvige m or f

  Nynorsk: kvige f

• Old Church Slavonic: юница f (junica)
• Old English: hēahfore f
• Old Norse: kvíga f
• Ottoman Turkish: دوگه (düge), طانا (dana)
• Persian: تلیسه (fa) (talise)
• Plautdietsch: Hocklinkj n
• Polish: jałówka (pl) f, jałowica (pl) f, cielica (pl) f
• Portuguese: novilha (pt) f, bezerra (pt) f
• Romanian: juncă (ro), vițea (ro), junincă (ro)
• Russian: тёлка (ru) f (tjólka), не́тель (ru) f (nételʹ)
• Sardinian: tràila
• Scots: quaig (Shetlandic)
• Serbo-Croatian:

  Cyrillic: ју̀ница f

  Roman: jùnica (sh) f

• Slovak: jalovica (sk) f
• Slovene: telica f
• Spanish: becerra (es) f, vaquilla (es) f
• Swedish: kviga (sv) c
• Turkish: düve (tr)
• Turkmen: tüve
• Tuvan: казыра (kazıra)
• Udmurt: кунян (kuńan)
• Ukrainian: тели́ця f (telýcja)
• Vilamovian: kołw
• Wolof: wulu

ugly or objectionable woman

• Finnish: lehmä (fi)
• French: thon (fr) m, morue (fr) f
• Russian: уро́дина (ru) f (uródina)
• Spanish: bruja (es) f, adefesio (es) m
• Turkish: ayı (tr), manda (tr), sığır (tr)