cotter

• Nom avec plusieurs sens : paysan tenancier dans les Highlands écossais, vilain anglais médiéval, ou élément de fixation consistant en une cale ou une goupille insérée dans une fente pour assembler deux autres pièces.

A noun with multiple meanings: a peasant farmer in the Scottish Highlands, a medieval English villein, or a fastener consisting of a wedge or pin inserted through a slot to hold two other pieces together.

1. Scottish peasant farmerC1formalbritish

   A peasant farmer who lived in a cottage and worked on a small plot of land, historically in the Scottish Highlands.

   petit fermier écossais (cotter)

   • The cotter tended his small field of oats and barley.
   • In the Highlands, a cotter often paid rent through labor.
   • The life of a cotter was one of hard work and little reward.

   Synonymescottagercottarcottiercrofter

2. Medieval English villeinC1formalbritish

   A medieval English peasant who was bound to the land and owed service to a lord, similar to a serf.

   Cotter (vilain médiéval anglais)

   • The cotter was required to work the lord's fields for several days each week.
   • Medieval records list the number of cotters on each manor.
   • A cotter had fewer rights than a free tenant.

   Synonymescottarcottier

3. Mechanical fastenerB2formal

   A wedge or pin inserted through a slot to hold two other pieces together, often used in machinery.

   Goupille

   • The mechanic replaced the cotter to secure the axle.
   • A cotter pin is essential for keeping the wheel in place.
   • He inserted a cotter through the bolt to prevent it from loosening.

   Synonymescotter pinkeypinwedge