*SET-U

English word origin

Etymology of cozen

From coz(y) + -en.

2 source sectionsExtended source reportWiktionary original ↗
In this entry · 2 source sections

The source etymologies

Wiktionary via Kaikki / Wiktextract

The source reports below are imported and unreviewed by *SET-U. Separate numbered origins and differing source variants are preserved; agreement within this extraction is not independent corroboration.

Source etymology 1

Original entry ↗
verb

To become cozy; (by extension) to become acquainted, comfortable, or familiar with.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

From coz(y) + -en.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "cozy<alt:coz(y)>",
        "4": "-en<id:inchoative>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "From coz(y) + -en."
    },
    {
      "name": "ety",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": ":af",
        "3": "cozy<alt:coz(y)>",
        "4": "-en<id:inchoative>",
        "text": "+",
        "tree": "1"
      },
      "expansion": "Etymology tree\nEnglish coz(y)\nProto-Germanic *-in-\nProto-Indo-European *-h₂\nProto-Indo-European *-éh₂\nProto-Indo-European *-yéti\nProto-Indo-European *-eh₂yéti\nProto-Indo-European *-h₂ti\nProto-Germanic *-ōną\nProto-Germanic *-inōną\nProto-West Germanic *-inōn\nOld English -nian\nMiddle English -enen /-nen\nEnglish -en\nEnglish cozen\nFrom coz(y) + -en."
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "coz(y)",
      "cozy#English"
    ],
    [
      "-en",
      "-en#English:_inchoative"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To become cozy; (by extension) to become acquainted, comfortable, or familiar with."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "intransitive"
      ],
      "recordId": "c109bef9677a41c1824d4699a13b0ae02473fcdcc90d81128ef9131ac69ce3e6",
      "rawRecordSha256": "777f1b923693042b2246a99197279a50742e95d50a60ea70e930c9fcfae7a22b",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 229045
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Source etymology 2

Original entry ↗
verb

To cheat; to defraud; to deceive, usually by small arts, or in a pitiful way.

Selected source glosses provide context, not a complete modern definition inventory

Perhaps from obsolete Italian cozzonare (“to cheat”), from cozzone (“middleman, broker”), from Latin cōciō (“dealer”).

Relationships mentioned by the source

These are extracted mentions, not a timeline or a verified sequence of immediate parents.

Inspect preserved source fields

Raw extraction fields are retained for auditing. Their order does not establish ancestry.

{
  "templates": [
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "it",
        "3": "cozzonare",
        "4": "",
        "5": "to cheat"
      },
      "expansion": "Italian cozzonare (“to cheat”)"
    },
    {
      "name": "der",
      "args": {
        "1": "en",
        "2": "la",
        "3": "cōciō",
        "4": "",
        "5": "dealer"
      },
      "expansion": "Latin cōciō (“dealer”)"
    }
  ],
  "links": [
    [
      "cozzonare",
      "cozzonare#Italian"
    ],
    [
      "cozzone",
      "cozzone#Italian"
    ],
    [
      "cōciō",
      "cocio#Latin"
    ]
  ],
  "references": [],
  "descendants": [],
  "lexical": [
    {
      "pos": "verb",
      "glosses": [
        "To cheat; to defraud; to deceive, usually by small arts, or in a pitiful way."
      ],
      "tags": [
        "archaic"
      ],
      "recordId": "ac3edaae6dcb1982fa9c4240742680a40556e8c7f49f853fd2ebc7c84d57b40c",
      "rawRecordSha256": "540d58f7e28d2530789dae55f604b0204868d32d89922782563bbb8dce9b0684",
      "sourceRecordOrdinal": 229046
    }
  ],
  "omittedAuxiliaryFields": {
    "templates": 0,
    "links": 0,
    "references": 0,
    "descendants": 0,
    "lexicalRecords": 0,
    "lexicalSenses": 0,
    "glosses": 0
  }
}

Where this record stops

This page does not supply an independently verified sound-change sequence, first-use manuscript or complete family tree unless a cited analysis explicitly establishes one. Missing detail here is a limit of this record—not a claim that humanity knows nothing more.

An older meaning does not determine what a word must mean today. Follow the sources, preserve disagreements, and keep ancestry separate from interpretation.

Contribute located evidence for cozen →

Source and snapshot

Imported from Wiktionary contributors; extracted by Tatu Ylonen / Wiktextract / Kaikki.org. Selected fields are reformatted and grouped; wording, source identity and etymology sections are retained. CC-BY-SA-4.0 applies to the imported source material.

Dump: 2026-10-01 · Extracted: 2026-10-30. These are snapshot dates, not the word’s first attestation or the page’s revision date.

Source entry and bibliography ↗Wiktionary revision history ↗Acquisition and rights ledger
Machine-source provenance
Source SHA-256
5ff2c072f8099f2d2ce484bd6957bf179f046d2ad37bc36555edf8bb84cb5291
Import run
73216b9a9b78ed3830994bf853103716f5a4dc57099e371e9f8fdc468facca26
Permanent entry ID
w-Y296ZW4