bovine

comparative more bovine · superlative most bovine

1. not comparableOf, relating to, or characteristic of cattle, buffaloes, or bison.

   Synonyms: neatish, vaccine

   1. not comparableBelonging to the subfamily Bovinae.

      Synonyms: neatish, vaccine

2. figurativelySluggish, dull, slow-witted.

   They had been selected and arranged with a dull, bovine indifference to any meaning that any of them might have.

   1988 October 10, Douglas Adams, The Long Dark Tea-Time of the Soul, New York, N.Y.: Simon and Schuster, →ISBN, page 69

   2 more examples

   For reasons which are really a matter for a trainee psychoanalyst, who plays James Bond is a big thing for Spencer. To this end, he has unleashed a series of thoughts so bovine that I’ll just give you one for a little flavour.

   2018 August 16, Marina Hyde, “Sorry to break it to you, far-righters: James Bond is not on your team”, in The Guardian

   The inevitable consequence of handling complex international issues with cruel and bovine simplicity is to spread fear, uncertainty and instability.

   2025 February 5, “The Guardian view on Trump’s foreign policy: an alarming new order takes shape”, in The Guardian, →ISSN

plural bovines

1. An animal of a family, subfamily, tribe, or genera including cattle, buffaloes and bison.
   1. oftenspecificallyAn animal of the subfamily Bovinae.

      Near-synonyms: cattle beast, cattlebeast, cow

      Synonyms: cattle beast, cattlebeast, cow