Cow vs. Ox

By Jaxson

Main Difference

The main difference between Cow and Ox is that the Cow is a domesticated form of Aurochs and Ox is a common bovine draft animal.

  • Cow

    Cattle—colloquially cows—are the most common type of large domesticated ungulates. They are a prominent modern member of the subfamily Bovinae, are the most widespread species of the genus Bos, and are most commonly classified collectively as Bos taurus.

    Cattle are commonly raised as livestock for meat (beef and veal), as dairy animals for milk and other dairy products, and as draft animals (oxen or bullocks that pull carts, plows and other implements). Other products include leather and dung for manure or fuel. In some regions, such as parts of India, cattle have significant religious meaning.

    Around 10,500 years ago, cattle were domesticated from as few as 80 progenitors in southeast Turkey. According to an estimate from 2011, there are 1.4 billion cattle in the world. In 2009, cattle became one of the first livestock animals to have a fully mapped genome. Some consider cattle the oldest form of wealth, and cattle raiding consequently one of the earliest forms of theft.

  • Ox

    An ox (plural oxen), also known as a bullock in Australia and India, is a bovine trained as a draft animal. Oxen are commonly castrated adult male cattle; castration makes the animals easier to control. Cows (adult females) or bulls (intact males) may also be used in some areas.

    Oxen are used for plowing, for transport (pulling carts, hauling wagons and even riding), for threshing grain by trampling, and for powering machines that grind grain or supply irrigation among other purposes. Oxen may be also used to skid logs in forests, particularly in low-impact, select-cut logging.

    Oxen are usually yoked in pairs. Light work such as carting household items on good roads might require just one pair, while for heavier work, further pairs would be added as necessary. A team used for a heavy load over difficult ground might exceed nine or ten pairs.

Wikipedia
  • Cow (noun)

    An adult female of the species Bos taurus that has calved.

  • Cow (noun)

    Any member of the species Bos taurus regardless of calves.

  • Cow (noun)

    Beef: the meat of cattle as food.

  • Cow (noun)

    Any bovines or bovids generally, including yaks, buffalo, etc.

  • Cow (noun)

    A female member of other large species of mammal, including the bovines, moose, whales, seals, hippos, rhinos, manatees, and elephants.

  • Cow (noun)

    A woman considered unpleasant in some way, particularly one considered nasty, stupid, fat, lazy, or difficult.

  • Cow (noun)

    A chock: a wedge or brake used to stop a machine or car.

  • Cow (verb)

    To intimidate; to daunt the spirits or courage of.

    “Con artists are not cowed by the law.”

  • Ox (noun)

    An B. taurus).

  • Ox (noun)

    Any bovine animal (genus Bos). A neat, a beef.

Wiktionary
  • Ox (noun)

    a domesticated bovine animal kept for milk or meat; a cow or bull

    “he was tall and broad and as strong as an ox”

  • Ox (noun)

    a castrated bull used as a draught animal

    “an ox cart”

  • Ox (noun)

    used in names of wild animals related to or resembling a domesticated ox, e.g. musk ox.

Oxford Dictionary

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