Cossack

UK:*UK and possibly other pronunciationsUK and possibly other pronunciations/ˈkɒsæk/US:USA pronunciation: respellingUSA pronunciation: respelling(kos′ak, -ək)


WordReference Random House Unabridged Dictionary of American English © 2025
Cos•sack  (kos′ak, -ək),USA pronunciation n. 
  1. Language Varieties(esp. in czarist Russia) a person belonging to any of certain groups of Slavs living chiefly in the southern part of Russia in Europe and forming an elite corps of horsemen.
  • a Turkic word taken to mean "adventurer, freebooter,'' adopted as an ethnic name by Turkic tribal groups of the Eurasian steppes
  • Polish kozak or Ukrainian kozák, ultimately
  • 1590–1600

Collins Concise English Dictionary © HarperCollins Publishers::
Cossack / ˈkɒsæk/
  1. (formerly) any of the free warrior-peasants of chiefly East Slavonic descent who lived in communes, esp in Ukraine, and served as cavalry under the tsars
  1. of, relating to, or characteristic of the Cossacks: a Cossack dance
Etymology: 16th Century: from Russian kazak vagabond, of Turkic origin
'Cossack' also found in these entries (note: many are not synonyms or translations):
Pugachov - ataman - cassock - kazachok - kazatsky

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