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cows

verb

present tense third-person singular of cow
as in bullies
to make timid or fearful by or as if by threats a sharp glare cowed the child into being quiet

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 cows With their long and crescent-shaped horns, the Inyambo cows graze at the King’s Palace Museum in Nyanza and at the homes of some of Rwanda's richest people, including President Paul Kagame. — ABC News, 27 June 2026 The notion of cow tipping is based on the idea that cows sleep standing up. — Encyclopedia Britannica, 20 Mar. 2026 Mother cows bond deeply with their calves. — Arkansas Online, 2 Feb. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for cows
  1. bullies
  2. intimidates
  3. badgers
  4. frightens
  5. scares
Verb
  • Backstage, Kenny Omega calls the Don Callis Family bullies and tells them to pick any three members to face him and The Young Bucks, who are standing beside Omega, next week.
    — Rob Wolkenbrod, Forbes.com, 16 Aug. 2026
  • Williams called Valkyries fans bullies in an Instagram Live stream earlier this week, and by Friday night, Chase Center had the receipts.
    — Nathan Canilao, Mercury News, 20 June 2026
Definition of bullies
Verb
  • Melanie Melanie came to this reunion prepared with both facts and a prosecutorial confrontation style that effectively intimidates all of her on-stage opponents.
    — Kathleen Walsh, Vulture, 1 Sep. 2026
  • In the five vignettes, James, as his character Eddie Horniman, intimidates various individuals while going through the clean-up, the sacrifice, the angle, the cut and the judgment — all steps of serving Stella Artois.
    — Chiara Kim, PEOPLE, 26 Aug. 2026
Definition of intimidates
Verb
  • For her part, Clare isn’t thrilled when her mother badgers her about bringing her mysterious new boyfriend to dinner to finally meet the family.
    — Aramide Tinubu, Variety, 21 Sep. 2026
Definition of badgers
Verb
  • The prospect of Sean Steur or Lewis Hall — whose contract situation Wilson refused to be drawn on, despite being asked three times — leaving is not something which frightens the hierarchy.
    — Chris Waugh, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2026
  • Penelope, too, is asked to occupy a landscape that frightens her, not only as a neurodivergent child in a neurotypical culture, but as a child now situated in an adult world.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 21 Aug. 2026
Definition of frightens
Verb
  • What scares me is to see so many people traveling so fast with electric power and with, presumably, no training!
    — Letters to the Editor, The Orlando Sentinel, 11 Sep. 2026
  • The protective gear that the firefighters are wearing also scares him.
    — Julie Dobrow, The Conversation, 8 Sep. 2026
Definition of scares

Browse Nearby Words

cowriters
cows
cow town
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Cows.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/cows. Accessed 27 Sep. 2026.

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