cowpea Syllabification: (cow·pea)Pronunciation: /ˈkouˌpē/Definition of cowpea noun a plant of the pea family native to the Old World tropics. It is an important pulse for animal feed and human consumption, both the pod and the seed being edible. Vigna unguiculata, family Leguminosae the seed of the cowpea plant as food. cowpea in other Oxford dictionaries Definition of cowpea in the British & World English dictionary