cobble1
/ˈkɒb(ə)l
/noun
1A small round stone used to cover road surfaces: the sound of horses' hooves on the cobbles...
- The window in the study shattered as a piece of cobble flew into to it.
- Among the items found were pieces of 12th century pottery, 12th or 14th century cobble and part of a hearth.
- In total there are 148 square metres of accommodation, while outside, the back garden is laid in patio and cobble.
1.1 (cobbles) British Small round lumps of coal.You make the big decision to finish and then they keep moving the dates to make sure they get every last cobble of coal....
- I found I could relate this cobble to the very last year that the mine was being mined.
- Cobbles of coal may be seen in the water showing the location of outcropping seams.
Origin
Late Middle English: from cob1 + -le2.
Rhymes
cobble2
/ˈkɒb(ə)l/verb [with object]
1 (cobble something together) Roughly assemble or produce something from available parts or elements: the film was imperfectly cobbled together from two separate stories...
- With the help of various agents we managed to cobble something together.
- Anyway, hopefully between us we will be able to cobble something together.
- Even if an agreement is cobbled together it will not please everyone.
Synonyms
prepare roughly/hastily, make roughly/hastily, put together roughly/hastily, scribble, improvise, devise, contrive, rig (up), patch together, jerry-build
informal throw together, whip up, fix, rustle up
British informal knock up
2 dated Repair (shoes): it had a tarnished brass knocker showing a pixie cobbling shoes...
- Modern economies rely on the division of labor, such that one needn't bake bread, smith tools and cobble shoes in a day's work.
Origin
Late 15th century: back-formation from cobbler.