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heifer

UK/ˈhɛfə(ɹ)/US/ˈhɛfə(ɹ)/
nounC1Common in everyday speech and writing · #7,682 of 15,258neutral

Other forms: heifers

A heifer is a young cow that has not yet had a calf. A dairy heifer, in-calf heifers, buy a heifer.

The word marks a stage rather than a breed, and she becomes a cow with her first calf. It is a working farm term and appears in every livestock market report.

CosyCobra · CC BY-SA 4.0

Definitions of heifer

  1. 1nounheiferA young cow that has not yet had a calf.C1

    “He sold six in-calf heifers at the spring market.”

heifer is an animal.

Where it comes from

Old English heahfore is of disputed origin, though the first part may be heah, high, and the second a word for an ox.

  1. Old English

    heahfore

  2. Middle English

    heyfre

  3. English, today

    heifer

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

Etymology from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA

Practise this word

heifer in the wild

  • Based in Little Rock, Arkansas, United States, Heifer International started with a shipment of 17 heifers to Puerto Rico in 1944.

    Heifer International

  • The beef top blade steak (also known as the chicken steak) is a cut from the chuck section of a steer or heifer.

    Blade steak

  • Hermes gave him a heifer on condition Battus kept the theft secret.

    Battus (mythology)

  • Carroll Victory moved horses, heifers, and mules as well as some chicks, rabbits, and goats.

    SS Carroll Victory

  • When Hera discovers the affair Zeus transforms Io into a white heifer to protect her from Hera's wrath.

    Mercury and Argus (Rubens)

From Wikipedia, CC BY-SA 4.0. These sentences were written by other people about their own subjects; they are here to show the word at work, not as anybody’s opinion.