Neats

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. An informal term referring to livestock, particularly cattle, that are specifically bred for agricultural or farming purposes
2. A colloquial expression for domesticated animals, primarily cattle or similar livestock, raised for milk and meat
3. Used to describe livestock, especially cattle, that are kept for farming or agricultural production

Etymology: The word "neats" is the plural of "neat," used in the old sense of cattle. Its root is Old English "nēat," meaning animal, ox, or cow, a word that goes back to a Proto-Germanic term for property or livestock. That older sense of wealth in animals is still visible in cognate forms across the Germanic languages: Dutch "noot" (cattle, in compounds), Swedish "nöt," and Icelandic "naut," which still mean cattle or bulls. The adjective "neat," meaning tidy or clean, comes from an entirely different source. It entered English from Anglo-Norman and Old French "net," meaning clean or pure, which traces back to Latin "nitidus," "gleaming." The two words only merged in spelling and sound over the centuries, which is why an English speaker today would hardly link "neat" with cattle at all.

Synonyms: tidies, arranges