ox

—oxlike, adj.

/oks/, n., pl. oxen for 1, 2, oxes for 3.

1. the adult castrated male of the genus Bos, used chiefly as a draft animal.

2. any member of the bovine family.

3. Informal. a clumsy, stupid fellow.

[bef. 900; ME oxe, OE oxa; c. OFris oxa, OS, OHG ohso, ON uxi, oxi; akin to Welsh ych]

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Domesticated form of large bovid (species Bos taurus) that once moved in herds across North America and Europe (where they have disappeared) and Asia and Africa (where some still exist in the wild).

The docile castrated male is used as a draft animal in many countries. Oxen are used for food in some areas. The term is also applied to a castrated male of any cattle breed. See also aurochs, yak.

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▪ Bos taurus

      (Bos taurus, or B. taurus primigenius), a domesticated form of the large horned mammals that once moved in herds across North America and Europe (whence they have disappeared) and Asia and Africa, where some still exist in the wild state. South America and Australia have no wild oxen. Oxen are members of the Bovidae family.

      The castrated male of B. taurus is a docile form especially useful as a draft animal in many less developed parts of the world. Oxen are also used for food in some areas.

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