cowed

American

[koud] / kaʊd /

adjective

frightened by threats, violence, superior strength or ability, etc.; intimidated or overawed.

No, I’m not worried about going up against the chess champion—what do you take me for, an easily cowed novice?

verb

the simple past tense and past participle of cow.

Other Word Forms

uncowed

adjective

Etymology

Origin of cowed

First recorded in 1740–50; cow ² ( def. ) + -ed ² ( def. ) for the adjective; cow ² ( def. ) + -ed ¹ ( def. ) for the verb

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Yet even Honor is cowed by the household’s steely Yugoslav maid, Greta, who dismisses all heartbreaks and hysterics with the motto, “play stupid games, win stupid prizes.”

From The Wall Street Journal • May 15, 2026

Of course some of us wept and raged when he once again had to flee some bigger monkey that he had clearly annoyed, but while Punch was certainly cowed, he was never broken.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 20, 2026

Apparently cowed by the regime's display of raw, indiscriminate power, such a bold move by the opposition seems, for now at least, highly unlikely.

From BBC • Jan. 15, 2026

"But we will not be intimidated. We will not be cowed."

From Barron's • Oct. 18, 2025

Roza was Halina Solkolkowski’s granddaughter, not easily cowed by anyone—hadn’t her babcia once chased a bear from the kitchen using only a broom?

From "Bone Gap" by Laura Ruby

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023