Word.ws English Dictionary

petcock

UK/ˈpɛtkɒk/

petcock noun: a small valve, spout, or faucet operated by hand, usually used to release pressure or drain fluid.

petcock: a small valve, spout, or faucet operated by hand, usually used to release pressure or drain fluid
Image: Pearson Scott Foresman, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons

Noun

petcock (plural petcocks)

  1. A small valve, spout, or faucet operated by hand, usually used to release pressure or drain fluid.
    • The doctor placed the rubber mask over her face and turned a dial and I watched Catherine breathing deeply and rapidly. Then she pushed the mask away. The doctor shut off the petcock.1929, Ernest Hemingway, A Farewell to Arms, Folio Society, published 2008, page 297
    • The shutoff valve (petcock) is usually located on the gas pipe on the supply side of the meter.2010, International Fire Service Training Association, Essesntials of Fire Fighting and Fire Department Operations, 5th Edition, p. 780

Forms of petcock

pluralpetcocks

Origin of petcock

Apparently from pet + cock, because of its size.

Questions about petcock

What does petcock mean?
Petcock means a small valve, spout, or faucet operated by hand, usually used to release pressure or drain fluid.
What part of speech is petcock?
Petcock is a noun.
How do you pronounce petcock?
Petcock is pronounced /ˈpɛtkɒk/ (UK).
What is the plural of petcock?
The plural of petcock is petcocks.

Words near petcock in the dictionary

  1. Petchenek
  2. Petcheneks
  3. Petchey
  4. Petcheys
  5. Petcheys Bay
  6. petcock
  7. petcocks
  8. petcoke
  9. petcokes
  10. PETCs
  11. pete

Source and license

Adapted from Wiktionary: petcock (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: “petcock.” Word.ws, https://word.ws/petcock. Based on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.