Dictionary

Cousin John en · NOUN

Etymology

From John (“outhouse; lavatory; chamber pot; toilet”). Possibly derived from a "euphemistic phrase of excuse" (e.g., "visiting my cousin John" or "going to cousin John's house"), similar to modern use of "powdering one's nose", but this is unattested.

Meanings

1. (US, obsolete, slang, uncountable) A place or device for urination and defecation: an outhouse or chamber pot.
   • American males often used British terms such as Cousin John or Jake to refer to a privy or a chamber pot. 2001, “Public Privies to Private Baths”, in The Guide to United States Popular Culture, page 645:
   • 20. No freshman shall mingo against the College wall or go into the fellows' cuzjohn. 1735, Richard Waldron, "A Freshman Guide", in 1953, William Bentinck-Smith, The Harvard Book, p. 162
   • 18. No Freshman shall call or throw any thing across the College yard, nor go into the Fellow's Cuz-John.* 1741, “The Customs of Harvard College”, in A Collection of College Words and Customs, John Bartlett, published 1851, page 319:

Forms

Synonyms

john · jakes