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cow town

American  

noun

  1. a small town, especially one in a cattle-raising district in the western U.S. or Canada.

  2. a town or city, especially in the western U.S. or Canada, from which cattle are shipped to market.


Etymology

Origin of cow town

First recorded in 1880–85

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.

See Examples For:

The family moved from Arizona to Germany to England before settling in Davenport, a tiny cow town in eastern Washington.

From Science Magazine Jul. 20, 2022

While Green Bay was fawning and bowing to the demands of a diva, the Broncos got a quarterback capable of changing everything for the long-suffering football team in our dusty old cow town.

From Seattle Times Mar. 8, 2022

Marshal Wyatt Earp brings law and order to the Kansas cow town, starting with a ban on guns.

From Los Angeles Times Mar. 13, 2020

Even with all this change, Oklahoma’s capital sticks to its guns as a cow town.

From Washington Post Oct. 18, 2017

Now, up around that old cow town, Abilene, Kansas, it's a common sight to see the cornfields stretch out like an ocean.

From The Log of a Cowboy A Narrative of the Old Trail Days by Adams, Andy

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