cog

¹

[kog, kawg]

noun

1. a gear tooth, formerly especially one of hardwood or metal, fitted into a slot in a gearwheel of less durable material.

2. a cogwheel.

3. a person who plays a minor part in a large organization, activity, etc..

   He's just a small cog in the financial department.

verb (used without object)

cogged, cogging 

1. (of an electric motor) to move jerkily.

verb (used with object)

cogged, cogging 

1. to roll or hammer (an ingot) into a bloom or slab.

cog

²

[kog, kawg]

verb (used with object)

cogged, cogging 

1. to manipulate or load (dice) unfairly.

verb (used without object)

cogged, cogging 

1. to cheat, especially at dice.

cog

³

[kog, kawg]

noun

1. Carpentry.,  (in a cogged joint) the tongue in one timber, fitting into a corresponding slot in another.

2. Mining.,  a cluster of timber supports for a roof.

verb (used with or without object)

cogged, cogging 

1. Carpentry.,  to join with a cog.

cog.

⁴

abbreviation

1. cognate.

cog

¹

/ kɒɡ /

noun

1. any of the teeth or projections on the rim of a gearwheel or sprocket

2. a gearwheel, esp a small one

3. a person or thing playing a small part in a large organization or process

verb

1. (tr) metallurgy to roll (cast-steel ingots) to convert them into blooms

cog

²

/ kɒɡ /

noun

1. a tenon that projects from the end of a timber beam for fitting into a mortise

verb

1. (tr) to join (pieces of wood) with cogs

cog

³

/ kɒɡ /

verb

1. slang,  to cheat (in a game, esp dice), as by loading a dice

Word History and Origins

Origin of cog¹

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English cogge, probably from a North Germanic language; compare Swedish kugge, Norwegian kugg “cog”; akin to German Kugel “bullet, ball, shot,” Old English cycgel ( cudgel ( def. ) )

Origin of cog²

First recorded in 1525–35; origin uncertain

Origin of cog³

1855–60; special use of cog ¹; replacing cock in same sense, special use of cock ¹ (in sense of projection); coak

Word History and Origins

Origin of cog¹

C13: of Scandinavian origin; compare Danish kogge, Swedish kugge, Norwegian kug

Origin of cog²

C19: of uncertain origin

Origin of cog³

C16: originally a dice-playing term, of unknown origin

Idioms and Phrases

Idioms

1. slip a cog, to make a blunder; err.

   One of the clerks must have slipped a cog.

More idioms and phrases containing cog

• slip a cog

Example Sentences

But they are important cogs in the markets they serve, and employ large numbers of people.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

For now, it seems that my old home has become a tiny cog in the wider machine of Russia's war in Ukraine.

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The 23-year-old, who is second in England's tournament tackle stats with 67, has become a key cog in the England pack thanks to the physicality she brings to the game.

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He said Hussain played a significant role in the organisation, ensuring the "cogs in the machine worked", collecting and storing the drugs.

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"You can see the cogs turning and them thinking 'oh my goodness me, this could really work for us'."

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Related Words

• prong