Taxonomically, what is the singular common name for cattle?

Bull. And you're lucky—usually when I start an answer with only the word “Bull” on the first line, it's because I'm about to rip into the questioner for including a ridiculous and offensive assumption in the question. For you, though, it's just the correct answer. A singular “cattle” that is not a cow is a bull. Or a “steer” perhaps. read more

Cattle is plural. Cow is female singular. Bull is intact male singular. Steer is castrated male singular. Steers in groups are sometimes referred to as “beef” or “beeves” as in “20 head of beef.” “Beef cattle” is another common usage, that refers most often to steers. read more

The problem is that American English does not have a common expression for “cow” that is gender-less. Which seems odd, thus Ben’s asking me a few times. That said, in American English, cow is the commonly used singular for cattle, and is also used to distinguish female cattle from male cattle (bulls). read more

Colloquially, more general nonspecific terms may denote cattle when a singular form is needed. Australian, New Zealand and British farmers use the term "beast" or "cattle beast". "Bovine" is also used in Britain. The term "critter" is common in the western United States and Canada, particularly when referring to young cattle. read more