cod
noun
any of several soft-rayed food fishes of the family Gadidae, especially Gadus morhua, of North Atlantic waters.
cod
1 American
[kod]
/ kɒd /
noun
-
cod,
plural
-
cods
plural
-
any of several soft-rayed food fishes of the family Gadidae, especially Gadus morhua, of North Atlantic waters.
-
a closely related fish, Gadus macrocephalus, of the North Pacific Ocean.
-
any of several unrelated fishes, as rockfishes of the genus Sebastes.
cod
2
American
[kod]
/ kɒd /
noun
COD.
3
American
Or
cod.
abbreviation
C.O.D.
4
American
Or
c.o.d.
abbreviation
Commerce.
cod
1
British
/ kɒd /
noun
-
any of the gadoid food fishes of the genus Gadus, esp G. morhua (or G. callarias ), which occurs in the North Atlantic and has a long body with three rounded dorsal fins: family Gadidae . They are also a source of cod-liver oil
-
any other fish of the family Gadidae See gadid
-
any of various unrelated Australian fish, such as the Murray cod
COD
2
British
abbreviation
-
cash on delivery
-
(in the US) collect on delivery
cod
3
British
/ kɒd /
noun
-
dialect a pod or husk
-
an obsolete word for scrotum
-
obsolete a bag or envelope
cod
4
British
/ kɒd /
verb
-
slang to make fun of; tease
-
slang to play a trick on; fool
noun
-
slang a hoax or trick
-
slang a fraud; hoaxer
he's an old cod
adjective
cod
5
British
/ kɒd /
noun
Cod
6
British
noun
COD
Cultural
Usage
What does C. O. D. mean? C. O. D. is an abbreviation for cash on delivery, referring to an arrangement in which payment for a purchase is made directly by the purchaser to the person who delivers the item. C. O. D. can also stand for collect on delivery, meaning the same thing. That’s because C. O. D. doesn’t necessarily always mean that actual cash (paper money) is required (though it often used to mean this). Sometimes, a check, money order, or credit card payment will be accepted as C. O. D. C. O. D. can be used as a noun, as in Sorry, we don’t accept C. O. D.s. It can also be used as an adverb, as in We’re shipping it C. O. D.; as an adjective, as in Our C. O. D. orders are behind schedule; and in other variations. Although the term can be spelled without periods, they’re usually included to make it clear that the term is an abbreviation. Example: Most of our shipments are done C. O. D., and we have a high percentage of successful payments.
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of cod1
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English; origin uncertain
Origin of cod2
First recorded before 1000; Middle English; Old English codd; akin to Old Norse koddi “pillow”
Origin of C.O.D.4
An Americanism dating back to 1855–60
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The government complained that hungry sharks are eating too much Atlantic cod and Greenland halibut, cutting into what humans can bring home and damaging their gear.
From Salon ● Oct. 9, 2026
When asked on a podcast this year what he does to relax, Moynihan said: “I spend time with my family, I exercise, I do things, I read,” recalling he’d recently read a book about cod.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 17, 2026
Baseball-sized salt cod fritters arrive golden and hot.
From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026
Other descriptions have included it being like a mix of anchovy paste and high-strength cod liver oil.
From BBC ● Aug. 3, 2026
"Here we eat fish," the fool declared happily, waving a cod about like a scepter.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
“For graduation, she sent me a suit of clothes C.O.D. - cash on delivery,” he said.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 23, 2017
“For graduation, she sent me a suit of clothes C.O.D. — cash on delivery,” he said.
From Seattle Times ● Oct. 22, 2017
Customers called in orders, and he delivered C.O.D.
From New York Times ● Apr. 15, 2011
Our orders pay the price: a shop can only order twelve boards as opposed to ordering 25 boards because they have to pay C.O.D. or net 30.
From Time Magazine Archive
That was the gang of organized boosters, who would deliver, to order, in one day, C.O.D., any kind of garment you desired.
From "The Autobiography of Malcolm X" by Alex Malcolm X;Hailey
Image: Activision Warzone Warzone is the most important new variable Activision and its studios have to contend with with the launch of a new COD game this fall.
From The Verge ● Aug. 26, 2020
Back home in Ormond Beach, we play a lot of COD, a great team game.
From Golf Digest ● Jun. 25, 2019
Usually when you first sign up with Diamond, you write a COD check or whatever to get your comics delivered to your store.
From Slate ● Nov. 2, 2017
Of course, the staple of COD are robust multiplayer matches.
From Washington Times ● Dec. 5, 2015
The COD, though small and limited mainly to Johannesburg and Cape Town, had an influence disproportionate to its numbers.
From "Long Walk to Freedom" by Nelson Mandela
For the Cod Army, who won six promotions in 12 years in their impressive journey from non-league, this result will surely be remembered longest of all.
From BBC ● Oct. 28, 2026
Mr. Gammons didn’t summer on the Cape; he summered at the Cape Cod Baseball League, in whose hall of fame he is ensconced.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 25, 2026
The complaint, filed in April in Miami-Dade County, alleged the incident occurred at Peters’ parents’ home in Cape Cod.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 22, 2026
Half a century after the last "Cod Wars" with Britain, many Icelanders are reluctant to yield even the tiniest bit of control of their hard-won national waters to Brussels.
From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026
In May 2005, the Links sold their house in Alpharetta for $420,000 and bought a Cape Cod in Charlotte for $627,500.
From "Class Matters" by The New York Times
"They'll order two cods and one chips to share, I think that's their way of trying to save their money."
From BBC ● May 13, 2026
Apparently some of the cods discovered they could activate the feeder by hooking the loop onto their tag and swimming a short distance away.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 8, 2017
In May 2014 a study highlighted an example of innovative tool use by Atlantic cods being held in captivity for aquaculture research.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 8, 2017
These clever cods honed their technique through hundreds of “tests”—and it became a finely tuned series of goal-directed, coordinated movements.
From Scientific American ● Jun. 8, 2017
The first train-load netted sixty dollars a head at Omaha—but they were beeves; cods like an ox's heart and waddled as they walked.
From The Outlet by Andy Adams
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