bobbin

American  

[bob-in] / ˈbɒb ɪn /

noun

1. a reel, cylinder, or spool upon which yarn or thread is wound, as used in spinning, machine sewing, lacemaking, etc.

2. Electricity.

   1. a spoollike form around which a coil of insulated wire is wound to provide an inductance.

   2. the coil itself.

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bobbin British  

/ ˈbɒbɪn /

noun

1. a spool or reel on which thread or yarn is wound, being unwound as required; spool; reel

2. narrow braid or cord used as binding or for trimming

3. a device consisting of a short bar and a length of string, used to control a wooden door latch

4. 1. a spool on which insulated wire is wound to form the coil of a small electromagnetic device, such as a bell or buzzer

   2. the coil of such a spool

5. slang (plural) matter that is worthless or of inferior quality; rubbish

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Etymology

Origin of bobbin

1520–30; < Middle French bobine hank of thread, perhaps bob- an expressive base akin to bob ² + -ine -ine ²

Explanation

A bobbin is the part of a sewing machine on which the lower thread is wound. The machine makes a stitch by catching the bottom thread, from the bobbin, with the top thread, from the needle. Most bobbins are wound with thread and inserted in sewing machines, but the word describes many spools and cylinders that hold string, yarn, wire, or other materials. Some machines contain bobbins, wound with wire or tape, and a weaver or knitter often works with a yarn bobbin close at hand. Bobbin comes from the French bobine, "small instrument used in sewing," which shares a Latin root with babble, for the sound it makes while unspooling.

Example Sentences

And how long before this hyperbaric, ultrasonic sewing machine spins a bobbin?

From The Wall Street Journal • Feb. 12, 2026

In the adjoining bathroom, you’ll find brass switchplates and a hand-drawn and -painted black-and-white encaustic tile inspired by European antique bobbin furniture legs.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2025

So with a bobbin of freshly spun Manchester cotton in hand, we headed 45 miles north to Blackburn.

From BBC • Dec. 26, 2017

Spinning like a bobbin, she wraps fabric around her body as fast as others can pull it off.

From New York Times • Dec. 6, 2017

I untied the bobbin and held it out for her to see.

From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff