adobe

[uh-doh-bee]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR adobe ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

sun-dried brick made of clay and straw, in common use in countries having little rainfall.

a yellow silt or clay, deposited by rivers, used to make bricks.

a building constructed of adobe.

a dark, heavy soil, containing clay.

Origin of adobe

1750–60; Americanism; < Spanish < Arabic al-ṭub the brick < Coptic to:o:be brick < Egyptian Demotic tb < Egyptian Hieroglyphic ḏbt

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for adobe

tile, house, brick, clay, mudcap

Examples from the Web for adobe

Contemporary Examples of adobe

Bin Laden stood in an adobe walled bedroom, his back to the door.
I Shot Bin Laden
Elliot Ackerman
November 16, 2014
Representatives for Adobe did not respond to requests to comment.
Adobe’s ‘Creative Cloud’ Goes Offline—and Takes a Million Designers With It
Kyle Chayka
May 16, 2014
And how much are we supposed to trust a single company—Adobe—that has so much control over our creative class?
Adobe’s ‘Creative Cloud’ Goes Offline—and Takes a Million Designers With It
Kyle Chayka
May 16, 2014
Adobe claims that their cloud apps will work offline as well.
Adobe’s ‘Creative Cloud’ Goes Offline—and Takes a Million Designers With It
Kyle Chayka
May 16, 2014
Other non-design services, like Adobe Business Catalyst, which hosts email fundraising campaigns and e-commerce, also went down.
Adobe’s ‘Creative Cloud’ Goes Offline—and Takes a Million Designers With It
Kyle Chayka
May 16, 2014

Historical Examples of adobe

There were several men lounging about the adobe when he reached it.
When the West Was Young
Frederick R. Bechdolt
Every day Schiefflin set forth on his mule from the adobe house.
When the West Was Young
Frederick R. Bechdolt
The adobe flashed out from the shadow and Roger slid down into the well.
The Forbidden Trail
Honor Willsie
Dick suggested we save lumber by making the engine house of adobe.
The Forbidden Trail
Honor Willsie
"If the adobe won't take too long, I like the idea," said Roger.
The Forbidden Trail
Honor Willsie

British Dictionary definitions for adobe

adobe

noun

a sun-dried brick used for building
(as modifier)an adobe house

a building constructed of such bricks

the clayey material from which such bricks are made

Word Origin for adobe

C19: from Spanish

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

Word Origin and History for adobe

1739, American English, from Spanish adobe, from oral form of Arabic al-tob "the brick," from Coptic tube "brick," a word found in hieroglyphics.