cosset [ˈkɒsɪt] n.
1.) A lamb reared without the aid of the dam. Hence: A pet, in general.
cosset [ˈkɒsɪt] v. t.
1.) To treat as a pet; to fondle (Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary).
Etymology: Possibly from Anglo-Norman coscet, pet lamb, from Middle English cotsete, cottage-dweller, from Old English cotsæta: cot, cottage + sæte, inhabitant.
"But Nature is no sentimentalist,—does not cosset or pamper us. We must see that the world is rough and surly, and will not mind drowning a man or a woman; but swallows your ship like a grain of dust. The cold, inconsiderate of persons, tingles your blood, benumbs your feet, freezes a man like an apple" (The Conduct of Life, Ralph Waldo Emerson, 1860).
(Das Eismeer, Caspar David Friedrich, 1824)
4 comments:
I like the etymology of this one.
p.s: It feels nice to be here!
p.s2: Last time I forgot to ask you where the quotation you used about Dodonean was from.
Dam? *looks up* Oh, a mum.
I wouldn't have thought about something as soft or cute as a lamb, or as sweet (? questionable) as to treat as a pet (there you have it, questionably sweet). Probably because your picture is misleading. Couldn't you just post a painting of a cute cuddly lamb? No, rocks, that's what you give us to cosset. Frozen, pointy rocks. Tssssss.
RYC: Ask away!
When I was a kid, my paternal side of the family used this word regularly. Not about me, of course. But clearly it was just a standard word to them. Hardly ever hear it used anymore.
First time I heard this and I think I will use this a lot more. Also it is easy to pronounce.
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