as in cowpoke
a hired hand who tends cattle or horses at a ranch or on the range cowboys were rounding up the cattle for branding

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of cowboy Hauser’s jaded ranch foreman Rip, who first came to John Dutton as a young boy on the run after killing his stepfather to protect his mother, learned how to be a cowboy from John, who treated him like a son. Rosy Cordero, Deadline, 3 Sep. 2025 Rather than going with another dress for the festivities, Moretz decided on a white cutout suit accessorized with a cowboy-esque hat. James Factora, Them., 2 Sep. 2025 Learning about cowboys while walking through a cemetery is the best preparation apparently! Lexy Perez, HollywoodReporter, 31 Aug. 2025 The Cuckoo’s Nest/Zubie’s parking lot in Costa Mesa became ground zero for clashes between punks and cowboys. Matthew Wills, JSTOR Daily, 31 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for cowboy
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cowboy
Noun
  • The Player’s Guide details how to build a character, whether its just a common cowpoke or one of the more unusual options like a huckster or blessed.
    Rob Wieland, Forbes.com, 29 May 2025
  • It’s been ten weeks since the robbery, and Theresa and Shermy the dog are the last two urban cowpokes standing at the old makeshift homestead motel.
    Andy Andersen, Vulture, 18 Apr. 2025
Noun
  • There are plenty of places to take a horse, with experienced cowhands to guide the way.
    Jenny Peters, Oc Register, 9 Sep. 2025
  • Now, the ranch is proactively using drones equipped with speakers and bright lights as stand-in cowhands, WSJ reported.
    Rachel Raposas, People.com, 5 Aug. 2025
Noun
  • Joe worked as a cowpuncher in Flagler, Colo., making $150 a day tending to cattle on horseback.
    Jose A. Del Real, Washington Post, 6 Nov. 2022
Noun
  • There are muddy buckaroo boots worn by some lucky child, and the tiny boots of Major Lynn White (1838-1915), then the world’s smallest man.
    Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 3 Sep. 2025
  • The group disqualifies him, however, after researchers discover his buckaroo abilities are limited to wearing expensive Stetson hats and tripping on his lasso.
    Gustavo ArellanoColumnist, Los Angeles Times, 28 Dec. 2022
Noun
  • The picture-perfect cowman’s paradise of Stockyards City is true to its stripes—and nowhere is this more evident than in Cattlemen’s Steakhouse.
    Lisa Cericola, Southern Living, 29 Mar. 2025
  • The reply of my friend and hunting companion was one of those quaint, rasping epithets which only a cowman can manage when everything has gone wrong.
    Frank C. Hibben, Outdoor Life, 27 Feb. 2025
Noun
  • Both center on the children of John Dutton, the Montana rancher and politician played by Kevin Costner on Yellowstone.
    Randall Colburn, Entertainment Weekly, 7 Sep. 2025
  • Officers said — and video showed — the rancher moved his hands into his jacket after exiting his truck immediately following the crash.
    Nicole Blanchard, Idaho Statesman, 7 Sep. 2025
Noun
  • Instead, their only aim is to protect themselves, which is precisely how the second horseman arrives.
    Mark Travers, Forbes.com, 7 Sep. 2025
  • Ride horseback with local gauchos (skilled horsemen) near the quaint towns of Cachi or Cafayate.
    Carola Fresno, Travel + Leisure, 2 Aug. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Cowboy.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cowboy. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.

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