/ ɒks; NAmE ɑːks/ noun ( pl. oxen / ˈɒksn; NAmE ˈɑːksn/)
1.
a bull (= a male cow) that has been castrated (= had part of its sex organs removed), used, especially in the past, for pulling farm equipment, etc.
—compare bullock , steer
2.
( old-fashioned ) any cow or bull on a farm
—see also cattle
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WORD ORIGIN
Old English oxa , of Germanic origin; related to Dutch os and German Ochse , from an Indo-European root shared by Sanskrit ukṣán bull.