Illustration of adobe
- adobe 2
adobe
noun
ado·be ə-ˈdō-bē 
1
: a brick or building material of sun-dried earth and straw
2
: a structure made of adobe bricks
3
: a heavy clay used in making adobe bricks
broadly : alluvial or playa clay in desert or arid regions
adobelike
ə-ˈdō-bē-ˌlīk
adjective 
Did you know?
Handmade sun-dried bricks, adobes are formed from a mixture of heavy clay and straw found in dry regions. As a building material, adobes date back thousands of years and are found in many parts of the world. Molds for shaping the bricks were brought to the New World by the Spanish. Excellent insulating properties make adobes ideal material for both dwellings and ovens; home interiors retain heat in winter and stay cool in summer. The adobe buildings at Taos, New Mexico, are typical of Native American pueblo dwellings.
Example Sentences
The house was built of adobe.
Recent Examples on the Web The adobe-style home was custom built for Garbo in 1937 and completely transformed roughly 70 years later by current owner and interior designer Nicole Sassaman, reported the Los Angeles Times. 
Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 21 July 2022 The one-room adobe at 12655 Sunset Drive in a rural area south of Westfield North County mall, was built in 1872 by Zenas Sikes for his family. Linda Mcintosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 June 2022 But not too far away: His friends called his New York home the Santa Fe house, because of its adobe-style design, filled with pink, yellow and turquoise colors. Jordan Valinsky, CNN, 27 Aug. 2022 Native traditions made their impact, too: on a trip to the Southwest in 1915, Schindler admired the massive, unadorned façades of Pueblo adobe construction. Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 21 July 2022 Think must-have hot tools, sneakers ideal for your next hot girl walk, and a range of home deals that will convince yourself your humble adobe might be in need of a refresh. ELLE, 13 July 2022 The restaurant’s sprawling spaces are a 60-year-old recreation of Bent’s Fort, an adobe outpost that was a fur-trading center in the 1830s. David Bloom, Forbes, 16 June 2022 Judd unified and adapted the structure, which was originally three separate 1940s warehouses for wool and mohair storage beside the railroad tracks, by adding quarter-panel windows and pivot doors, a sotol garden and an adobe-walled courtyard. Anna Mazurek, Washington Post, 24 June 2022 The adobe-style architecture matches the main house, which is just a few steps away. Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 22 June 2022 See More
Abby Montanez, Robb Report, 21 July 2022 The one-room adobe at 12655 Sunset Drive in a rural area south of Westfield North County mall, was built in 1872 by Zenas Sikes for his family. Linda Mcintosh, San Diego Union-Tribune, 27 June 2022 But not too far away: His friends called his New York home the Santa Fe house, because of its adobe-style design, filled with pink, yellow and turquoise colors. Jordan Valinsky, CNN, 27 Aug. 2022 Native traditions made their impact, too: on a trip to the Southwest in 1915, Schindler admired the massive, unadorned façades of Pueblo adobe construction. Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 21 July 2022 Think must-have hot tools, sneakers ideal for your next hot girl walk, and a range of home deals that will convince yourself your humble adobe might be in need of a refresh. ELLE, 13 July 2022 The restaurant’s sprawling spaces are a 60-year-old recreation of Bent’s Fort, an adobe outpost that was a fur-trading center in the 1830s. David Bloom, Forbes, 16 June 2022 Judd unified and adapted the structure, which was originally three separate 1940s warehouses for wool and mohair storage beside the railroad tracks, by adding quarter-panel windows and pivot doors, a sotol garden and an adobe-walled courtyard. Anna Mazurek, Washington Post, 24 June 2022 The adobe-style architecture matches the main house, which is just a few steps away. Emma Reynolds, Robb Report, 22 June 2022 See More Word History
Etymology
borrowed from Spanish, borrowed from Arabic aṭ-ṭūb, from al "the" + ṭūb "brick (material), bricks," borrowed from Coptic (Sahidic dialect) tôôbe, (Bohairic dialect) tôbi "brick," going back to Old Egyptian db.t
First Known Use
1748, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
adobe
noun
ado·be ə-ˈdō-bē
1
: brick made of earth or clay dried in the sun
2
: a building made of adobe