‖kos, noun2

/kɔs/
Forms:
cos, costShow more Also cos, cost, koss, kost.
Origin:
Afrikaans, DutchShow more Afrikaans, from Dutch kost food.
1. Food, victuals. Also attributive. See also padkos, veldkos.
1828 J. Philip Researches I. 156‘Lebricht Aris’..engaged with the Boor..to work six months on his farm, at two dollars (three shillings) per month, and his cost, (victuals,) on condition that the Boor should immediately discharge his debt.
1840 Inn sign, Farmer Peck’s (nr Muizenberg, Cape) in A. Gordon-Brown S. Afr. Heritage (1965) Lekker kost as much as you please, excellent beds without any fleas.
1845 W.N. Irwin Echoes of Past (1927) 235I..take the opportunity of the first off saddle to stretch myself in the Shade, and, while my orderly sits Smoking or Cooking some Cos (flesh), read your welcome epistle.
1850 J.D. Lewins Diary. 20 Sept.People cutting rushes & Ponas grumbling for kost. All he gets from me won’t choke him, damn his eyes.
1899 G.H. Russell Under Sjambok 259But drink, Baasie, drink, and the koss will soon be ready.
1900 A.W. Carter Informant, Ladybrand 8 Mar. 14Most of the men had had nothing to eat or drink from Tuesday night and their first cry was ‘Kos’ — Pohl gave away everything he had but of course it was not nearly enough and those that came late got nothing.
1910 D. Fairbridge That Which Hath Been (1913) 80Mevrouw seated him on her right hand at the long table, creaking under the weight of lekker kost, served in deep dishes of blue and white Nankin.
1966 I. Vaughan These Were my Yesterdays 4At each outspan a new team of horses and a new driver took over, while we ate a picnic meal packed in what we called the ‘kos box’.
1984 Sunday Times 8 July (Lifestyle) 9The kos, hardly five star, consists of a reasonable potato hash, cabbage, a vegetarian concoction, plain salad and a fish dish which ran out.
1985 Rand Daily Mail 15 Mar. (Funfinder) 10Closer to home-styled kos — Leipoldts, named after the South African poet C. Louis Leipoldt, is now open on Sundays.
2. combinations
kos geld [Dutch geld money], an allowance for food; but see also quotation 1857;
koshuis/-hœɪs/ plural koshuise [Afrikaans, huis house], a boarding house or school; also attributive;
kos-mandjie/-maɪŋki/ [Afrikaans, mandjie basket], a food-basket.
1795 ‘J.H.C.’ in G.M. Theal Rec. of Cape Col. (1897) I. 217What he received was an allowance..for his maintenance,..30,000 Dutch florins per annum, together with his Costgeld, the whole amounting..to 1,116 dollars 5 schellings and 2 stivers per month.
1857 J.M. Orpen Hist. of Basutus 73‘Kost geld’ (food money) is the slang term among the Boers for the purchase-money of a slave, and is supposed to mean payment for the food the seller has been at the expense of providing for the slave before the sale.
1926 P.W. Laidler Tavern of Ocean 51The soldiers in Nassau bastion..received weekly about six pounds of bread, and an allowance of one penny three farthings kost geld with which to buy other food.
1977 F.G. Butler Karoo Morning 132Some of them came in wagons..wearing old-fashioned but spotless clothes — to hand over their children to the free Koshuis.
1986 Personality 1 Sept. 34By the time they get back to their koshuis dinner is long since over — but they’ve still got to eat.
1988 V.R. Jacobs in Style Apr. 6I once lived in one of the ‘Residences’ so prevalent in Pretoria — a cross between an hotel and a boarding house with a dash of the old ‘koshuis’ thrown in.
1989 Sunday Times 22 Oct. 23More Conservative Party mutterings, this time about Free State koshuise being opened up.
1913 D. Fairbridge Piet of Italy 23Everyone was packed into the Cape cart waiting at the door, the kost-mandje was roped on behind.
1913 D. Fairbridge Piet of Italy 24Shouldering the kost-mandje as lightly as though the solid food inside were feathers.
1913 D. Fairbridge Piet of Italy 30Come, Gamdin, it is time for lieffin and our kost-mandje holds enough for twelve.
1972 L.G. Green When Journey’s Over 7I can remember the days of the kosmandjie and the station coffee stalls.
Food, victuals. Also attributive.
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korrel, verb transitivev.koskas, nounn.
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