cotter
noun · verb
Simple meaning
Fastener made up of a wedge or pin inserted through a slot to hold two other pieces together.
Pronunciation
Say it like this:
kahterSay the bold part a little louder.
IPA pronunciation (US)
ˈkɑtɚ
This word is pronounced essentially the same in American and British English, so one transcription covers both.
IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) is a standard way of writing speech sounds.
Definition
Everyday modern meanings first, grouped by part of speech.
noun
mechanical engineering
Fastener consisting of a wedge or pin inserted through a slot to hold two other pieces together
mechanical engineering
A pin or wedge inserted through a slot to hold machine parts together.
informal
A cotter pin.
A minor city in Baxter County, Arkansas, United States.
A minor city in Louisa County, Iowa, United States.
verb
transitive
To fasten with a cotter.
Word at a Glance
- Difficulty
- C2 · Proficient (estimated)
- Frequency
- Uncommon
- Typical Use
- Varies by meaning
Word Aura™
How this word commonly comes across.
Aura for this meaning
This meaning: Fastener consisting of a wedge or pin inserted through a slot to hold two other pieces together
Used this way, cotter is a specialist word that usually carries little praise or criticism of its own. This is an engineering use: it is a working term used for accuracy on the job.
- Emotional tone
- Neutral
- Formality
- Specialist/technical
- Intensity
- Not strongly marked
- How common
- Specialized
- Connotation
- Clinical and technical
- Usage feel
- Technical and specialized
Where it naturally appears
- Technical/specialist writing
- Science
Usage note
In general conversation this sense usually needs explaining — outside its field, people reach for a plainer word.
Nearby words
- cottar , rarer, so it draws attention
Word Aura describes common impressions, not a measurement. Tone changes with sentence, speaker, relationship and situation.
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Common Patterns and Combinations
How this word naturally appears with others.
Word Family
Related forms, grouped by how they connect.
Compound terms
Established multiword terms.
A cotter consisting of a split pin that is secured (after passing through a hole) by splitting the ends apart.
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Words can change meaning depending on context.
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Dictionary data from Wiktionary via the Free Dictionary API. Simple meanings, combinations and word intelligence are built from verified reference data, no AI is used to load this page.