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cocked hat

American  

noun

  1. a man's hat, worn especially in the 18th century, having a wide, stiff brim turned up on two or three sides toward a peaked crown.

idioms

  1. knock into a cocked hat, to destroy completely; render unachievable.

cocked hat British  

noun

  1. a hat with opposing brims turned up and caught together in order to give two points (bicorn) or three points (tricorn)

  2. slang to outdo or defeat

"Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged" 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Etymology

Origin of cocked hat

First recorded in 1665–75; cock 2 + -ed 2

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.

Cocked hat, worn by Lemuel Lyon on board the tea-ship in Boston harbor.

From The Military Journals of Two Private Soldiers, 1758-1775 With Numerous Illustrative Notes by Tomlinson, Abraham

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

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.