dairy cattle

plural noun

: cattle kept for milk production

Examples of dairy cattle in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
The virus spreads through an animal’s saliva, mucus and feces, or through milk from dairy cattle. — Jen Christensen, CNN Money, 14 Nov. 2025 Bird flu can be transmitted from birds to humans through close contact with infected animals, such as poultry, wild birds, and dairy cattle. — Christopher Edwards, PEOPLE, 14 May 2026 Cardozo added that all milking operations have ceased, and some beef and non-lactating dairy cattle are still grazing. — Richard Halstead, Mercury News, 26 Jan. 2026 Once, Pennsuco was a lively town in far Northwest Dade where hundreds of residents first raised sugar cane, then beef and dairy cattle. — Miami Herald Archives, Miami Herald, 5 Apr. 2026 See All Example Sentences for dairy cattle

Word History

First Known Use

1895, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of dairy cattle was in 1895

Rhymes for dairy cattle

See All Rhymes for dairy cattle

Browse Nearby Words

dairy breed
dairy cattle
dairying
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Dairy cattle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dairy%20cattle. Accessed 8 Jul. 2026.

Copy Citation

Kids Definition

dairy cattle

noun
: cattle raised especially to produce milk

More from Merriam-Webster on dairy cattle

Britannica.com: Encyclopedia article about dairy cattle

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of gambol

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?

Commonly Misspelled Words

How to Use Em Dashes (—), En Dashes (–) , and Hyphens (-)
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

One-Word Oxymorons: Bittersweet, Spendthrift, and More

Ten Words Ending with a Silent ‘T’

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Is that lie 'bald-faced' or 'bold-faced'?

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
hangman letters and game
Hangman Lightning Round Figure out which word fits in the blanks.
See All