cocking

Verb

cock (third-person singular simple present cocks, present participle cocking, simple past and past participle cocked)

1. (ambitransitive) To lift the cock of a firearm or crossbow; to prepare (a gun or crossbow) to be fired.
   • Cocked, fired, and missed his man.1812, Lord Byron, The Waltz
2. (intransitive) To be prepared to be triggered by having the cock lifted.
   • In the darkness, the gun cocked loudly.
3. (transitive) To erect; to turn up.
   • Our Lightfoot barks, and cocks his ears.1720, John Gay, Thursday: Or, The Spell
4. (Ireland, UK, slang, transitive) To copulate with; (by extension, as with fuck) to mess up, to damage, to destroy.
   • Foster's Lager TV commercial, 1980s
     "Please tell me the way to Cockfosters." ... "Drink it warm, mate."
5. (transitive) To turn or twist something upwards or to one side; to lift or tilt (e.g. headwear) boastfully.
   • He cocked his hat jauntily.
6. (dated, intransitive) To turn (the eye) obliquely and partially close its lid, as an expression of derision or insinuation.
   • The Sentry, to this question, said nothing in reply; / But first he cocked his rifle, and then he cocked his eye.1873, Mark Lemon, Henry Mayhew, Tom Taylor, Punch, volumes 64-65, page 36

See all 35 meanings of cock