1.
[syn: cockscomb, common cockscomb, Celosia cristata, Celosia argentea cristata]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Coxcomb \Cox"comb`\ (k?ks"k?m`), n. [A corrupted spelling of
cock's comb.]
1.
(a) A strip of red cloth notched like the comb of a cock,
which licensed jesters formerly wore in their caps.
(b) The cap itself.
[1913 Webster]
2. The top of the head, or the head itself.
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We will belabor you a little better,
And beat a little more care into your coxcombs.
--Beau & Fl.
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3. A vain, showy fellow; a conceited, silly man, fond of
display; a superficial pretender to knowledge or
accomplishments; a fop.
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Fond to be seen, she kept a bevy
Of powdered coxcombs at her levee. --Goldsmith.
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Some are bewildered in the maze of schools,
And some made coxcombs, nature meant but fools.
--Pope.
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4. (Bot.) A name given to several plants of different genera,
but particularly to Celosia cristata, or garden
cockscomb. Same as Cockscomb.
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The Collaborative International Dictionary of English v.0.48:
Cockscomb \Cocks"comb`\ (k[o^]ks"k[=o]m`), n. [1st cock, n. +
comb crest.]
1. See Coxcomb.
[1913 Webster]
2. (Bot.) A plant (Celosia cristata), of many varieties,
cultivated for its broad, fantastic spikes of brilliant
flowers; -- sometimes called garden cockscomb. Also the
Pedicularis, or lousewort, the Rhinanthus
Crista-galli, and the Onobrychis Crista-galli.
[1913 Webster]
WordNet (r) 3.0 (2006):
Celosia cristata
n 1: garden annual with featherlike spikes of red or yellow
flowers [syn: cockscomb, common cockscomb, Celosia
cristata, Celosia argentea cristata]