- Celosia cristata
- 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. [1913 Webster]
We will belabor you a little better, And beat a little more care into your coxcombs. --Beau & Fl. [1913 Webster]
3. A vain, showy fellow; a conceited, silly man, fond of display; a superficial pretender to knowledge or accomplishments; a fop. [1913 Webster]
Fond to be seen, she kept a bevy Of powdered coxcombs at her levee. --Goldsmith. [1913 Webster]
Some are bewildered in the maze of schools, And some made coxcombs, nature meant but fools. --Pope. [1913 Webster]
4. (Bot.) A name given to several plants of different genera, but particularly to {Celosia cristata}, or garden cockscomb. Same as {Cockscomb}. [1913 Webster]
The Collaborative International Dictionary of English. 2000.
