coxcombry
UK/ˈkɒkskəmɹɪ/
coxcombry noun: a behaviour or manner that is characteristic of a coxcomb; a foppish behaviour.
Noun
coxcombry (usually uncountable, plural coxcombries)
- A behaviour or manner that is characteristic of a coxcomb; a foppish behaviour.
- He was clean shaved; clean shaving is a favorite coxcombry of the deacon class.1865, Theodore Winthrop, chapter IX, in John Brent
- Behaviour or airs characteristic of a coxcomb; foppishness.
- His manner was perhaps the more seductive, / Because he ne'er seem'd anxious to seduce; / Nothing affected, studied, or constructive / Of coxcombry or conquest: no abuse / Of his attractions marr'd the fair perspective, / To indicate a Cupidon broke loose, / And seem to say, "Resist us if you can"...1824 March 26, [Lord Byron], Don Juan. Cantos XV. and XVI., London: […] [C. H. Reynell] for John and H[enry] L[eigh] Hunt, […], →OCLC, canto XV, stanza XII
- He paused, grimly regarding it, while a dash of pleased coxcombry seemed to mingle with the otherwise savage satisfaction expressed in his face.1855, Herman Melville, chapter XI, in Israel Potter
Forms of coxcombry
| plural | coxcombries |
|---|
Origin of coxcombry
From coxcomb + -ry.
Questions about coxcombry
- What does coxcombry mean?
- Coxcombry means a behaviour or manner that is characteristic of a coxcomb; a foppish behaviour.
- What part of speech is coxcombry?
- Coxcombry is a noun.
- How do you pronounce coxcombry?
- Coxcombry is pronounced /ˈkɒkskəmɹɪ/ (UK).
- What is the plural of coxcombry?
- The plural of coxcombry is coxcombries.
Words near coxcombry in the dictionary
Source and license
Adapted from Wiktionary: coxcombry (page history and authors). Text available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 4.0 license. Word.ws reformatted the entry and added links. Wiktionary data of 2026-09-02.
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Cite this entry: “coxcombry.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/coxcombry. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.