Kine is an old plural form of cow. In earlier English, some common nouns formed plurals in ways that now feel unusual, and kine was one of them.
The form goes back to Old English: the singular was cu and one historic plural was cy. Over time, that plural developed into kine in Middle English. As English spelling and plural patterns became more regular, cows became the standard plural, and kine gradually fell out of everyday use.
Today, you are most likely to meet kine in older literature, traditional religious wording, or writing that intentionally uses an archaic tone. It can also appear in set phrases, such as kine of the field, where the wording is chosen for its traditional flavor.
How to use it correctly now:
- Use cows in normal modern writing.
- Use kine only if you are quoting a historical source or creating an old fashioned style.
Example: “The kine were grazing beyond the hedgerow, a sight more common in the old parish records than on today’s roads.”