cos
/kɑs/noun, conjunction, determiner
cos is spelled C-O-S: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears 11 times per million words in written English, the 6,565th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data, counting Cos, the name). As a noun, cos means “Synonym of romaine lettuce, a long-leaved variety of lettuce” (English Wiktionary, September 2026). The plural of cos is coses or cosses.
How many letters and syllables are in cos?
| Letters | 3: C-O-S |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | 11 times per million words; the 6,565th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with | |
| Same letters |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is cos?
Cos appears 11 times per million words in written English, the 6,565th most frequent word form in the list. The list counts every capitalisation together, so this includes Cos, the name.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce cos?
- US /kɑs/
- UK /kɒs/
As a conjunction (“Informal spelling of 'cause (“because”)”): /kɒz/, /kəz/, /kʌz/.
As a noun (“Alternative form of coz, cousin”): /kʌz/.
Cos has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Persent101-cos.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Words people confuse with cos
Also written: coss, cousin, coz.
Sources: English Wiktionary (homophones, alternative spellings).
What rhymes with cos?
7 words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as cos from its last stressed vowel (/ɑs/):
Spelled with the same letters in another order: soc.
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of cos
- coses plural
- cosses plural
- co's
- coz
- more 'cos comparative
- most 'cos superlative
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does cos mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
noun
- 1
UKSynonym of romaine lettuce, a long-leaved variety of lettuce.
- 2
colloquialCosmetology.
- 3
plural of co
- 4
informalAlternative form of coz, cousin.
- 5
Alternative form of coss, a traditional Nepali unit of distance.
The stages and distances are as follows:–Hitounda to Bhainsa Dobháng, 3½ cos; to Bhimphédy, 4 cos; to Tambakhâni, 3 cos; to Chitlong, 3 cos; to Thankot, 3 cos; to Káthmándú, 3 cos–Total, 19½ cos.
determiner
- 1
nonstandardBelonging to co. Gender-neutral possessive determiner, grammatically equivalent to the gendered his and her and the singular their.
conjunction
- 1
IrelandUKinformalInformal spelling of 'cause (“because”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Where does cos come from?
Clipping of cos lettuce, variously derived from the Greek island of Kos and from Arabic خس (ḵass, “lettuce”).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).