cob

¹

[ kob ]

noun

1. a corncob.
2. a male swan.
3. a short-legged, thick-set horse, often having a high gait and frequently used for driving.
4. British. a mixture of clay and straw, used as a building material.
5. British Dialect. a rounded mass or lump.
6. a crude silver or gold Spanish-American coin of the 16th to 18th centuries, characteristically irregular in shape and bearing only a partial impression of the dies from which it was struck.

COB

²

abbreviation for

, Business.

1. close of business:

   The data analysis will be on your desk by COB Wednesday.

cob

¹

/ kɒb /

noun

1. an archaic or dialect name for the greater black-backed gull ( Larus marinus ) See also gull 1

cob

²

/ kɒb /

noun

1. a male swan
2. a thickset short-legged type of riding and draught horse
3. short for corncob corncob pipe cobnut
4. another name for hazel
5. a small rounded lump or heap of coal, ore, etc
6. a building material consisting of a mixture of clay and chopped straw
7. Also calledcob loaf a round loaf of bread

verb

1. informal.
   tr to beat, esp on the buttocks

Word History and Origins

Origin of cob¹

First recorded in 1375–1425; late Middle English cobbe “male swan, leader of a gang”; these and various subsequent senses are obscurely related and probably in part of distinct origin

Word History and Origins

Origin of cob¹

C16: of Germanic origin; related to Dutch kob, kobbe

Origin of cob²

C15: of uncertain origin; probably related to Icelandic kobbi seal; see cub

Related Words

• beat
• clinch
• complete
• cover
• crown
• eclipse
• exceed
• finish
• surpass
• wrap up