calf
English · Thesaurus
AI In plain words
Writing a short explanation…
Written by a house AI from the entry below, in your language. The entry itself is the source.
calf¹
- /kɑːf/ Northern England, UK, Wales
- /kæf/ Canada, US
- /kɐːf/ Australia, New Zealand
- /kaf/ Ireland, Scotland
- /kaːf/ Wales
- /kɛəf/
- /keɪf/ dialectal, obsolete
Sounds like caff, calf, kaf, kaph · Rhymes with -ɑːf, -æf
Where it comes from
From Middle English calf, from Anglian Old English cælf, calf (West Saxon ċealf), from Proto-West Germanic *kalb, from Proto-Germanic *kalbaz, further etymology unknown.
Cognates
* Scots caff (“calf”)
* Scots calf (“calf”)
* Scots cauf (“calf”)
* Scots cawf (“calf”)
* North Frisian Kualev (“calf”)
* North Frisian kualew (“calf”)
* North Frisian kuulew (“calf”)
* Saterland Frisian Koolich (“calf”)
* West Frisian keal (“calf”)
* German Kalb (“calf”)
* Luxembourgish Kallef (“calf”)
* Limburgish kalf (“calf”)
* Dutch kalf (“calf”)
* Vilamovian kołb (“calf”)
* Vilamovian kołp (“calf”)
* Faroese kálvur (“calf”)
* Icelandic kálfur (“calf”)
* Danish kalv (“calf”)
* Norwegian Bokmål kalv (“calf”)
* Norwegian Nynorsk kalv (“calf”)
* Swedish kalv (“calf”)
noun calves · calfs
- A young cow or bull of any bovid, such as domestic cattle or buffalo. And Goldenhorns calved. A great day in the wilderness, a joy and a delight. They gave her flour-wash, and Isak himself saw to it there was no stint of flour, though he had carried it all the way himself, on his back. And there lay a pretty calf, a beauty, red-flanked like her mother, and comically b
- Leather made of the skin of domestic calves; especially, a fine, light-coloured leather used in bookbinding. We find now, that instead of leather made from sheep, calf, goat, and pig-skins, each having, when finished, its own characteristic surface, that sheepskins are got up to look like calf, morocco, or pigskin; that calf is grained to resemble morocco or so polished and fattened as to have but little c
- The young of various animals, especially elephant, giraffe, reindeer, seal, or whale (also indiscriminately used of other animals).
- A mass of ice broken from a larger glacier, ice shelf, or iceberg. 1915 (published), 1848 (first written), Elisha Kent Kane, Adrift in the Arctic Ice Pack Our swell ceases with this wind, and the floes seem disposed to come together again; but the days of winter have passed by, and the interposing calves prevent the apposition of the edges
- A small island, near a larger island. Situated in the north of the Irish Sea and to the south-west of the isle of Man, the Calf of Man is ideally placed on the bird migration routes over the western side of the British Isles. Its importance for migrating and breeding birds had been recognised long before the observatory was established
- A cabless railroad engine.
- An awkward or silly boy or young man; any silly person; a dolt. some silly, doating, brainless calf
calf²
- /kɑːf/ Northern England, UK, Wales
- /kæf/ Canada, US
- /kɐːf/ Australia, New Zealand
- /kaf/ Ireland, Scotland
- /kaːf/ Wales
- /kɛəf/
- /keɪf/ dialectal, obsolete
Sounds like caff, calf, kaf, kaph · Rhymes with -ɑːf, -æf
Where it comes from
From Middle English calf, kalf, from Old Norse kalfi, possibly derived from the same Germanic root as English calf (“young cow”) (above). Cognate with Icelandic kálfi (“calf of the leg”).
noun calves
- The back of the leg below the knee.
- The muscle in the back of the leg below the knee. Sure, his calves are a little weak, but the rest of his physique is so overwhelming, he should place high.
Thesaurus
Closest in meaning: calfskin, sura, dogie, bull, kid, veal, beef, beast, fatted, neonate, newborn, baby, boy, wheel, little, petit
Translations
Every language
noun young cow or bull
| Español | becerro, becerra, ternero, ternera, vaquilla |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 송아지 song'aji |
| 日本語 | 子牛 koushi |
| 中文 | 小牛 xiǎoniú, 犢 /犊 dú, 牛犢 /牛犊 niúdú |
| हिन्दी | बछड़ा bachṛā |
| Kiswahili | ndama |
| Português | bezerro, terneiro, novilho, bezerra, terneira, novilha |
| Français | veau, velle |
| Deutsch | Kalb, Bullenkalb, Kuhkalb |
| Italiano | vitello |
| Ελληνικά | μοσχάρι moschári |
| Română | vițel, vițea |
| Русский | телёнок teljónok, теле́ц teléc |
| Tiếng Việt | bê |
| العربية | عِجْل ʕijl |
| עברית | עגל, עֵגֶל égel |
noun young deer, elephant, seal or whale (also used of some other animals)
| Español | cría, cervatillo, cervatilla, ballenato, ballenata, elefantito |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 仔 zǎi |
| Kiswahili | ndama |
| Português | filhote, cria |
| Français | éléphanteau, éléphantelle, chiot, blanchon, baleineau, baleinelle |
| Deutsch | Kalb |
| Română | pui |
| Русский | слонёнок slonjónok, тюленёнок tjulenjónok, китёнок kitjónok |
| العربية | دَغْفَل daḡfal, حُوَار ḥuwār |
noun chunk of ice broken off of a larger glacier, ice shelf, or iceberg
| Español | témpano |
|---|---|
| Kiswahili | ndama |
noun anatomy: back of the leg below the knee
| Español | pantorrilla, chamorro, pantorra, corva, corvejón |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 종아리 jong'ari |
| 日本語 | 脹脛 fukurahagi |
| 中文 | 腿肚子 tuǐdùzi |
| Kiswahili | ndama |
| Português | panturrilha |
| Français | mollet |
| Deutsch | Wade |
| Italiano | polpaccio |
| Ελληνικά | γάμπα gámpa |
| Română | pulpă, gambă |
| Русский | икра́ ikrá |
| Tiếng Việt | bắp chân, bắp vế |
| العربية | بَطَّة baṭṭa, رَبْلَةُ rablatu |
| עברית | שׁוֹק |
noun muscle in the back of the leg below the knee
| Español | gemelo, músculo gemelo |
|---|---|
| 中文 | 腓 féi |
| Kiswahili | ndama |
| Português | tríceps sural, gémeo |
| Deutsch | Wadenmuskel |
| Italiano | polpaccio |
| Română | pulpă |
| Русский | икра́ ikrá |
| العربية | بَطْن اَلسَّاق baṭn as-sāq |
Talk about this word "calf." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/calf. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. calf. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/calf "calf." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/calf.Cite this
@misc{calf_2026,
title = {calf},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/calf},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}