coxy

"Coxy" is an informal adjective, used mainly in British English, describing someone who is excessively self-confident, cheeky, or full of themselves — often with a hint of brashness that others find amusing or irritating. It is best understood as a less common variant of "cocky", the standard English term for this quality. A person described as coxy might strut about after a small victory, boast about their abilities, or carry themselves with an air of unearned superiority. Because it is informal, it belongs to casual speech and writing rather than formal prose, and it usually carries a mildly critical but not deeply hostile connotation. Learners of English will find that "cocky" is overwhelmingly the preferred form in both American and British usage, while "coxy" survives largely as a dialectal or playful alternative worth recognising rather than adopting.

Chiefly British informal: overly self-confident or conceited in a cheeky way; a variant form of 'cocky'.

Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.

Etymology of coxy

"Cocky" arose in the early nineteenth century as an extension of the figurative use of "cock", the male bird long associated with strutting self-importance. "Coxy" appears to have developed as a regional or informal spelling variant of "cocky", particularly in British dialect use, with no separate origin of its own. Its rhyming shape and meaning are entirely tied to that parent word.

Related word forms

How coxy is actually used

Informal register. The spelling 'coxy' is much less common than the standard form 'cocky'; writers should generally prefer 'cocky' unless deliberately using a dialectal or playful variant.

Easily confused with coxy

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What's the opposite of coxy?

Rhymes with coxy