German word

Cowboy

Pronunciation

IPA/ˈkaʊ̯bɔɪ̯/

Meaning

  • masculine nouncowboy

Example

Der Cowboy reitet auf dem Pferd.

The cowboy is riding a horse.

Illustration for Cowboy (cowboy)

More examples

Investoren kritisierten die Cowboy-Geschäftspraktiken des Start-ups.

Investors criticized the startup's cowboy business practices.

Core concept

A rider on horseback moving among cattle, with the rough Western figure also evoking a swaggering person.

Common phrases

  • Cowboy-Geschäftspraktiken

    cowboy business practices

  • sich wie ein Cowboy verhalten

    act like a cowboy

  • den Cowboy spielen

    play the cowboy

Similar words

Rinderhirte: A cattle herder who oversees, moves, and cares for a herd.
Cowgirl: A female rider who performs cattle work on horseback.
Viehtreiber: A worker who drives cattle herds from one place to another.
Hirte: A livestock herder who guards and tends animals in the open air.

Definition in German

Ein aus dem Englischen entlehntes Wort für einen in der Viehzucht arbeitenden Reiter (Rinderhirte) und umgangssprachlich für eine raue, draufgängerische Person.

Word origin

German borrowed Cowboy from English in the nineteenth century, where it names a cattle worker and combines the words cow and boy.

Usage tips

  • In German, Cowboy is masculine, with der Cowboy and the plural die Cowboys, and its figurative use can sound dismissive.

Other meanings

  • cowherdnoun

Opposites

  • Fachmannspecialistnoun
  • Professionalprofessionalnoun

Related words

  • Cowboytumcowboyismnoun
  • cowboyhaftcowboy-likeadjective
  • Cowboyhutcowboy hatnoun

Word lists with this word