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• bob
  bob

  noun

  a short, jerky motion.
• Bob
  Bob

  noun

  a first name, form of Robert.

bob

¹ American  

[bob] / bɒb /

noun

1. a short, jerky motion.

   a bob of the head.

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verb (used with object)

bobbed, bobbing

1. to move quickly down and up.

   to bob the head.

2. to indicate with such a motion.

   to bob a greeting.

verb (used without object)

bobbed, bobbing

1. to make a jerky motion with the head or body.

2. to move about with jerky, usually rising and falling motions.

   The ball bobbed upon the waves.

verb phrase

1. bob up to emerge or appear, especially unexpectedly.

   A familiar face bobbed up in the crowd.

bob ² American  

[bob] / bɒb /

noun

1. a style of short haircut for women and children.

2. a docked horse's tail.

3. a dangling or terminal object, as the weight on a pendulum or a plumb line.

4. a short, simple line in a verse or song, especially a short refrain or coda.

5. Angling.

   1. a knot of worms, rags, etc., on a string.

   2. a float for a fishing line.

6. a bobsled or bob skate.

7. Scot. a bunch, cluster, or wad, especially a small bouquet of flowers.

8. Obsolete. walking beam.

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verb (used with object)

bobbed, bobbing

1. to cut short; dock.

   They bobbed their hair to be in style.

verb (used without object)

bobbed, bobbing

1. to try to snatch floating or dangling objects with the teeth.

   to bob for apples.

2. Angling. to fish with a bob.

bob ³ American  

[bob] / bɒb /

noun

1. a tap; light blow.

2. a polishing wheel of leather, felt, or the like.

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verb (used with object)

bobbed, bobbing

1. to tap; strike lightly.

bob ⁴ American  

[bob] / bɒb /

noun

British Informal.

• bob
  plural

1. a shilling.

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Bob ⁵ American  

[bob] / bɒb /

noun

1. a first name, form of Robert.

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bob ¹ British  

/ bɒb /

verb

1. to move or cause to move up and down repeatedly, as while floating in water

2. to move or cause to move with a short abrupt movement, as of the head

3. to make (a bow or curtsy)

   the little girl bobbed before the visitor

4. to appear or emerge suddenly

5. (intr; foll by under, below, etc) to disappear suddenly, as beneath a surface

6. to attempt to get hold (of a floating or hanging object, esp an apple) in the teeth as a game

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noun

1. a short abrupt movement, as of the head

2. a quick curtsy or bow

3. Leisure:Bell-ringing a particular set of changes

4. angling

   1. short for bobfloat

   2. the topmost fly on a cast of three, often fished bobbing at the surface

   3. this position on a wet-fly cast

bob ² British  

/ bɒb /

noun

1. a hairstyle for women and children in which the hair is cut short evenly all round the head

2. a dangling or hanging object, such as the weight on a pendulum or on a plumb line

3. a polishing disc on a rotating spindle. It is usually made of felt, leather, etc, impregnated with an abrasive material

4. short for bob skate bobsleigh

5. a runner or pair of runners on a bobsled

6. angling a small knot of worms, maggots, etc, used as bait

7. a very short line of verse at the end of a stanza or preceding a rhyming quatrain (the wheel) at the end of a stanza

8. a refrain or burden with such a short line or lines

9. a docked tail, esp of a horse

10. dialect a hanging cluster, as of flowers or ribbons

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verb

1. (tr) to cut (the hair) in a bob

2. (tr) to cut short (something, esp the tail of an animal); dock or crop

3. (intr) to ride on a bobsled

bob ³ British  

/ bɒb /

verb

1. to tap or cause to tap or knock lightly (against)

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noun

1. a light knock; tap

Bob ⁴ British  

/ bɒb /

noun

1. slang everything is or will turn out all right

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bob ⁵ British  

/ bɒb /

noun

1. (formerly) an informal word for a shilling

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Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• bob
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of bob¹

First recorded in 1400–50, bob is from the late Middle English word bobben. See bob ²

Origin of bob²

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English bobbe (noun) “spray, cluster, bunch (of leaves, flowers, fruit, etc.)”; of uncertain origin

Origin of bob³

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English bobben “to strike, beat,” perhaps imitative; see bop ²

Origin of bob⁴

First recorded in 1780–90; origin unknown; perhaps from Bob

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Explanation

To bob is to dip up and down, the way something does when it floats on the surface of water. A lobster buoy bobs in the ocean, marking the spot where a lobsterman's trap is set. Your friend stands out when her red hat bobs among a crowd of people, and so does a red boat as it bobs on a lake. You might bob your head to indicate agreement or get a short haircut that's also called a bob. The motion bob comes from the Old English bobben, "to strike," while the hair style stems from the earlier bobbe, or "cluster," and first referred a trimmed horse's tail.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

bob Bob bobbed bobbing

"So there's a lot that's not great about an Oscar. And you don't get any money. They could give you a few bob with it, at least," she joked.

From BBC ● Jul. 17, 2026

What will today’s kids think of He-Man, the muscle-bound ’80s relic with the most iconic bob after Anna Wintour?

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 3, 2026

As if to distinguish herself further from the sea of Fox News look- and think-alikes, she cut her long blond waves into a modest bob.

From Slate ● May 6, 2026

“That’s the reason why we’ve seen prices basically bob up and down.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026

My own is barely longer than a bob.

From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse

Bob Woodward’s specialty is reporting stories for which he has guaranteed anonymity to those who talked to him.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 9, 2026

Former Intel CFO Bob Swan was derided as a bean counter and lasted just two years in the CEO spot after taking over for Brian Krzanich in 2019.

From MarketWatch ● Nov. 9, 2026

Founder Bob James said he was pleased to see the business move to what he described as "a long-term home", capable of supporting AerFin's next phase of expansion.

From BBC ● Nov. 5, 2026

Leo, the first US pope, quoted a Bob Dylan lyric in the preface to a book about disarmament published earlier this year, according to Vatican News.

From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026

Wherever Bob was taking them, she hoped it had clean restrooms and a snack machine.

From "The House of Hades" by Rick Riordan

Off a Mediterranean beach, countless shoes bobbed in the blue waters, abandoned by migrants who had swum to this slice of Spanish territory along the Strait of Gibraltar, just off the coast of Morocco.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 2, 2026

So in 1992, wearing flares, a bottle green jacket and a yellow headband over her bobbed blonde hair, van Heel appeared on the hit ITV programme.

From BBC ● Jun. 24, 2026

Pink poodles with long black eyelashes danced in a can-can line, a quartet of googly-eyed cacti bobbed along to the music and a trio of small white dogs galloped on the stage.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2026

With her brown bobbed haircut and round sunglasses, Pelicot has become an international feminist symbol, inspiring a change to French rape laws and a public reckoning with the problem of drugging women.

From Barron's ● Feb. 11, 2026

Pong expected the police boats to be full of officers, but they bobbed silently in the water, anchored in formation.

From "A Wish in the Dark" by Christina Soontornvat

"They were bobbing around in the sea and then the very next day they were found by British aircraft, British vessels and then taken away to the prisoner of war camp," he explained.

From BBC ● Oct. 21, 2026

The TV cameras didn’t help matters, at one point finding a lone Chargers fan amid an ocean of Raiders fans, a blue dot bobbing in a silver-and-black sea.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 20, 2026

Seen with the naked eye from the stern of our 40-foot tour boat, the dark blobs bobbing in the restless sea didn’t look like much.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 26, 2026

Now we are four confused people bobbing up and down in this cauldron of unbearable repetition.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 21, 2026

“What if we take it to the news?” a woman holding a newborn suggested from the front row, bobbing up and down to soothe her child.

From "Anger Is a Gift" by Mark Oshiro

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