cocker
cocker Lexical Profile
cocker Game Scores & Validity
• noun
A small, sturdy sporting dog of the spaniel family (specifically the English or American cocker spaniel), characterized by a silky coat and long, pendulous ears, originally bred in Britain to flush woodcock.
"The golden cocker trotted happily beside its owner along the woodland trail."
A person who breeds, trains, or handles gamecocks for cockfighting.
"In the eighteenth century, the local cocker was a regular figure at rural sporting fairs."
• verb
To pamper, indulge, or coddle excessively (now chiefly archaic or dialectal).
"His doting grandparents tended to cocker the boy with sweets and constant praise."
• Rhymes for cocker
• Nearby Words
Word Origin & Etymology
The noun sense referring to the dog breed derives from 'cock' (short for woodcock) plus the agent suffix '-er', as the dogs were bred to flush woodcocks from dense brush. The verb meaning to pamper comes from Middle English 'cokeren', likely related to 'cock' in the sense of strutting or fighting, shifting over time to mean indulging or fondling.