Cornish

American  

[kawr-nish] / ˈkɔr nɪʃ /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Cornwall, England, its inhabitants, or the Cornish language.

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noun

1. the Celtic language of Cornwall, extinct since c1800.

2. one of an English breed of chickens raised chiefly for crossing with other breeds to produce roasters.

Cornish British  

/ ˈkɔːnɪʃ /

adjective

1. of, relating to, or characteristic of Cornwall, its inhabitants, their former language, or their present-day dialect of English

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noun

1. a former language of Cornwall, belonging to the S Celtic branch of the Indo-European family and closely related to Breton: extinct by 1800

2. (functioning as plural) the natives or inhabitants of Cornwall

Etymology

Origin of Cornish

1350–1400; late Middle English, apparently syncopated variant of Middle English Cornwelisse. See Cornwall, -ish ¹

Example Sentences

At the same stage of his career, Joshua beat Gary Cornish to register a 14th stoppage and was selling out the O2 Arena.

From BBC • Mar. 28, 2026

There are about 400 to 500 advanced speakers of Cornish, with between 2,500 and 5,000 people having some basic knowledge.

From BBC • Feb. 4, 2026

In the 2021 census, more than 100,000 people expressed their main national identity, ethnicity or main language as Cornish.

From BBC • Feb. 4, 2026

Councillor Loveday Jenkin welcomed the idea of bilingual signage in supermarkets in the area, but said it should be in "Cornish not Welsh".

From BBC • Feb. 4, 2026

The Cornish Cross is a type of chicken bred for the industrial food chain.

From "The Omnivore's Dilemma" by Michael Pollan