cockle

1
[ kok-uhl ]
See synonyms for: cocklecockled on Thesaurus.com

noun
  1. any bivalve mollusk of the genus Cardium, having somewhat heart-shaped, radially ribbed valves, especially C. edule, the common edible species of Europe.

  2. any of various allied or similar mollusks.

  1. a wrinkle; pucker: a cockle in fabric.

  2. a small, crisp candy of sugar and flour, bearing a motto.

verb (used without object),cock·led, cock·ling.
  1. to contract into wrinkles; pucker: This paper cockles easily.

  2. to rise in short, irregular waves; ripple: The waves cockled along the shore.

verb (used with object),cock·led, cock·ling.
  1. to cause to wrinkle, pucker, or ripple: The wind cockled the water.

Idioms about cockle

  1. cockles of one's heart, the depths of one's emotions or feelings: The happy family scene warmed the cockles of his heart.

Origin of cockle

1
First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English cokel, cokil(le), from Old French coquille, “shell, shell of a mollusk, mollusk,” from Vulgar Latin cocchīlia (unattested), from Latin conchylia, plural of conchȳlium, from Greek konchȳ́lion, equivalent to konchȳ́l(ē) “mussel, cockle” + -ion diminutive suffix; compare Old English -cocc in sǣ-cocc literally, “sea-cockle” from Vulgar Latin coccus (unattested) for Latin concha conch

Other definitions for cockle (2 of 2)

cockle2
[ kok-uhl ]

noun
  1. a weed, as the darnel Lolium temulentum, or rye grass, L. perenne.

Origin of cockle

2
First recorded before 1000; Middle English cok(k)el, Old English coccel; further origin uncertain; perhaps from Late Latin cocculus (unattested), diminutive of coccus “berry, seed” (see coccus)

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use cockle in a sentence

  • Flashes of wit glanced here and there, and how they came home and warmed the cockles of the heart.

    Orley Farm | Anthony Trollope

British Dictionary definitions for cockle (1 of 2)

cockle1

/ (ˈkɒkəl) /


noun
  1. any sand-burrowing bivalve mollusc of the family Cardiidae, esp Cardium edule (edible cockle) of Europe, typically having a rounded shell with radiating ribs

  2. any of certain similar or related molluscs

  1. a wrinkle or puckering, as in cloth or paper

  2. a small furnace or stove

  3. cockles of one's heart one's deepest feelings (esp in the phrase warm the cockles of one's heart)

verb
  1. to contract or cause to contract into wrinkles

Origin of cockle

1
C14: from Old French coquille shell, from Latin conchӯlium shellfish, from Greek konkhulion, diminutive of konkhule mussel; see conch

British Dictionary definitions for cockle (2 of 2)

cockle2

/ (ˈkɒkəl) /


noun
  1. any of several plants, esp the corn cockle, that grow as weeds in cornfields

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012