English

Etymology 1

Middle English cogge or kogge (14th century), Old French cogue or coque , Middle Low German kogge , Middle Dutch cogghe , Middle High German kocke , German kock (15th century).

Noun

cog (plural: cogs)

1. (obsolete) a ship of burden, or war with a round, bulky hull

Etymology 2

Middle English cogge ; confer Swedish kugge and Norwegian kug of same sense. Nonetheless, the exact relation between the English and the Scandinavian words can't be determined. The meaning of "cog" in carpentry derives from association with a tooth on a cogwheel.

Noun

cog (plural: cogs)

1. a tooth on a gear
2. a gear; a cogwheel
3. (carpentry) a projection or tenon at the end of a beam desinged to fit into a matching opening of another piece of wood to form a joint

Translations

• German: Zahn m (1), Zahnrad n (2)

Etymology 3

Uncertain origin. Both verb and noun appear first in 1532.

Noun

cog (plural: cogs)

1. an act of cogging

Verb

to cog (cogs, cogged, cogging)

1. to cheat at dice
2. to cheat; to play or gamble fraudulently

Etymology 4

Forms

1. a spelling variant of the noun cogue