cony

== English == === Alternative forms === (rabbit): coney, cunny, connie === Etymology === From Middle English cony, back formation from conies (plural), from Anglo-Norman conis, the plural of connil (“rabbit”), from Latin cunīculus, of unknown origin. Cognate to Catalan conill, Dutch konijn, German Kaninchen, Spanish conejo, and Portuguese coelho. The original pronunciation was /ˈkʌni/ (for the spelling, compare honey and money), but the similarity to cunt (and particularly homophony with cunny) led through taboo avoidance both to the word's displacement in the main by rabbit and bunny and to the spelling-pronunciation /ˈkəʊni/ becoming standard. === Pronunciation === (UK) IPA(key): /ˈkəʊ.ni/ (US) IPA(key): /ˈkoʊ.ni/ Rhymes: -əʊni === Noun === cony (plural conies) A rabbit, especially the European rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus (formerly known as Lepus cuniculus). (UK, dialect) Rabbit fur. Locally for other rabbit-like or hyrax-like animals, such as the Cape hyrax (das, dassie) or the pika (Ochotona princeps, formerly Lagomys princeps). Used in the Old Testament as a translation of Hebrew שָׁפָן (shafán), thought to be the rock hyrax (Procavia capensis, syn. Hyrax syriacus). (obsolete) A simpleton; one who may be taken in by a cony-catcher. An edible West Indian fish, a grouper given in different sources as: Epinephelus apua, the hind of Bermuda; nigger-fish, Epinephelus punctatus; Cephalopholis fulva. Any of certain members of family Epinephelidae of Atlantic groupers, such as mutton hamlets, graysby, Cuban coneys, and rooster hinds. (UK, dialect) A burbot. (obsolete) A woman; a sweetheart. ==== Synonyms ==== (rabbit): bunny, hare (tropical West Atlantic groupers): coney (burbot): coney-fish ==== Derived terms ==== butter the cony cony wool ==== Related terms ==== Coney Island ==== Translations ==== === References === “cony”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC. C[harles] T[albut] Onions, editor (1973), “cony”, in The Shorter Oxford English Dictionary on Historical Principles, 3rd edition, Oxford: The Clarendon Press, →OCLC, page 420. The IUCN Red List of Threatened Species. Version 2014.3. === Anagrams === coyn, cyno-, cyon == Catalan == === Etymology === Inherited from Latin cunnus, compare Portuguese cona and Spanish coño. === Pronunciation === IPA(key): (Northern) [ˈkuɲ] IPA(key): (Balearic, Central, Valencia, Northwestern) [ˈkoɲ] === Noun === cony m (plural conys) (vulgar) cunt, pussy === Interjection === cony! (vulgar) expresses frustration or surprise ==== Alternative forms ==== coi (euphemistic) === Further reading === “cony”, in Diccionari de la llengua catalana [Dictionary of the Catalan Language] (in Catalan), second edition, Institute of Catalan Studies [Catalan: Institut d'Estudis Catalans], April 2007 “cony”, in Gran Diccionari de la Llengua Catalana, Grup Enciclopèdia Catalana, 2026 “cony” in Diccionari normatiu valencià, Acadèmia Valenciana de la Llengua. Alcover, Antoni Maria; Moll, Francesc de Borja (1963), “cony”, in Diccionari català-valencià-balear (in Catalan)