Word Pronunciation & Dictionary

cotter

/kɑtɚ/

Word Rarity Rare

Frequency: 2.79 in modern English

Syllables: cot-ter
IPA: /kɑtɚ/

8

Scrabble Score

6

Letters

2

Syllables

5

Unique Chars

Meaning

noun

A pin or wedge inserted through a slot to hold machine parts together.

noun

Informal

verb

To fasten with a cotter.

Transitive verb

noun

A peasant who performed labour in exchange for the right to live in a cottage.

name

Countable; Uncountable

name

A minor city in Baxter County, Arkansas, United States.

Countable; Uncountable

name

A minor city in Louisa County, Iowa, United States.

Countable; Uncountable

Example Sentences

"The chains are secured to each end of the cast-iron arches by cotters."
"She found Esco by the barn. He was trying to cotter a cart-wheel with a peg he had whittled from a locust branch, driving it in with a hand sledge"
"The toil-worn Cotter frae his labour goes,— / This night his weekly moil is at an end,— / Collects his spades, his mattocks, and his hoes, […]"

Etymology

Unknown.

Origin

Source language: Middle English

Word Breakdown

Root: cotter, cot
Suffix: cot

Regional Pronunciation

American English: /kɑtɚ/
British English: /kɒtə/

Usage

Inflected Forms

cotters (plural) cotters (present, singular) cottering (participle, present) cottered (participle, past) cottered (past) cottar (alternative) Cottier (alternative)

Derived Forms

cotterless

Phrases

cotter pin

Frequently Paired Words

cotter pin

Synonyms

coscet cottager cottar cottier

Rhymes With

potter hotter mater otter saltwater trotter spotter squatter plotter blotter imprimatur totter

Questions

How do you pronounce cotter?: The recorded pronunciation is /kɑtɚ/.
What does cotter mean?: A pin or wedge inserted through a slot to hold machine parts together.
Where does cotter come from?: It is traced to Middle English.

How to pronounce cotter

Open the pronunciation page — Open the Speakur entry for “cotter”.
Read the phonetic spelling — Read the IPA spelling (/kɑtɚ/) so you know which sounds to aim for.
Play the audio — Click Play to hear reference audio for “cotter”.
Repeat and practice — Say “cotter” aloud, matching stress and vowels until it feels natural.