cotter

1
[ kot-er ]
/ ˈkɒt ər /
Machinery
SEE SYNONYMS FOR cotter ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a pin, wedge, key, or the like, fitted or driven into an opening to secure something or hold parts together.
cotter pin.

verb (used with object)

to secure with a cotter.

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Origin of cotter

1
1300–50; Middle English coter; akin to late Middle English coterell iron bracket; of uncertain origin

Words nearby cotter

cottage roll, cottage tulip, cottage window, cottaging, Cottbus, cotter, cotter pin, cotter slot, Cotte's operation, Cottian Alps, cottid

Definition for cotter (2 of 2)

cotter2
[ kot-er ]
/ ˈkɒt ər /

noun

Scot. a person occupying a plot of land and cottage, paid for in services.
cottager (def. 2).

Origin of cotter

2
1175–1225; Middle English cotere<Anglo-French cot(i)er;see cot2, -er2
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to cotter

chunk, cusp, taper, spire, quoin, cleat, lump, keystone, prong, block, shim, chock

Example sentences from the Web for cotter

British Dictionary definitions for cotter (1 of 2)

cotter1
/ (ˈkɒtə) machinery /

noun

any part, such as a pin, wedge, key, etc, that is used to secure two other parts so that relative motion between them is prevented
short for cotter pin

verb

(tr) to secure (two parts) with a cotter

Word Origin for cotter

C14: shortened from cotterel, of unknown origin

British Dictionary definitions for cotter (2 of 2)

cotter2
/ (ˈkɒtə) /

noun

Also called: cottier English history a villein in late Anglo-Saxon and early Norman times occupying a cottage and land in return for labour
Also called: cottar a peasant occupying a cottage and land in the Scottish Highlands under the same tenure as an Irish cottier
See also cottier (def. 2), cottager (def. 1)

Word Origin for cotter

C14: from Medieval Latin cotārius, from Middle English cote cot ²
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