cony

English

Alternative forms

(rabbit): coney, cunny, connie

Etymology

From Middle English cony, back formation from conies (plural), from Anglo-Norman conis, the plural of connil (“rabbit”), from Latin cunīculus, of unknown origin. Cognate to Dutch konijn, German Kaninchen, Spanish conejo, and Portuguese coelho. The original pronunciation was /ˈkʌni/ (for the spelling, compare honey and money), but the similarity to cunt (and particularly homophony with cunny) led through taboo avoidance both to the word's displacement in the main by rabbit and bunny and to the spelling-pronunciation /ˈkəʊni/ becoming standard.

Pronunciation

(UK) IPA^(key): /ˈkəʊ.ni/
Audio (Southern England): (file)
(US) IPA^(key): /ˈkoʊ.ni/
Rhymes: -əʊni

Noun

cony (plural conies)

A rabbit, especially the European rabbit, Oryctolagus cuniculus (formerly known as Lepus cuniculus).
- c. 1517 (date written; published c. 1545), John Skelton, “Here after Foloweth the Booke Called Elynour Rummynge. The Tunnyng of Elynour Rummyng per Skelton Laureat.”, in Alexander Dyce, editor, The Poetical Works of John Skelton: […], volume I, London: Thomas Rodd, […], published 1843, →OCLC, page 108, lines 399–400:
  I were skynnes of conny, / That causeth I loke so donny.
  I wear skins of cony, / That cause me to look so dunny.
- c. 1598–1600 (date written), William Shakespeare, “As You Like It”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies […] (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act III, scene ii], lines 344-346:
  ORLANDO. Are you native of this place? / ROSALIND. As the cony that you see / dwell where she is kindled.
(UK, dialect) Rabbit fur.
Locally for other rabbit-like or hyrax-like animals, such as the Cape hyrax (das, dassie) or the pika (Ochotona princeps, formerly Lagomys princeps).
1. Used in the Old Testament as a translation of Hebrew שָׁפָן (shafán), thought to be the rock hyrax (Procavia capensis, syn. Hyrax syriacus).
(obsolete) A simpleton; one who may be taken in by a cony-catcher.
- 1599, Diet's Dry Dinner:
  It is a most simple animal; whence are derived our usual phrases of cony and cony catcher.
An edible West Indian fish, a grouper given in different sources as: Epinephelus apua, the hind of Bermuda; nigger-fish, Epinephelus punctatus; Cephalopholis fulva.
Several species of tropical west Atlantic groupers of family Epinephelidae, such as the mutton hamlet, graysby, Cuban coney, and rooster hind.
(UK, dialect) The burbot.
(obsolete) A woman; a sweetheart.