Dictionary.com

bodkin

[ bod-kin ]
/ ˈbɒd kɪn /
Save This Word!

noun
a small, pointed instrument for making holes in cloth, leather, etc.
a long pinshaped instrument used by women to fasten up the hair.
a blunt, needlelike instrument for drawing tape, cord, etc., through a loop, hem, or the like.
Obsolete. a small dagger; stiletto.
QUIZ
CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?
There are grammar debates that never die; and the ones highlighted in the questions in this quiz are sure to rile everyone up once again. Do you know how to answer the questions that cause some of the greatest grammar debates?
Question 1 of 7
Which sentence is correct?

Origin of bodkin

1350–1400; Middle English badeken, bo(i)dekyn, of uncertain origin
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use bodkin in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for bodkin

bodkin
/ (ˈbɒdkɪn) /

noun
a blunt large-eyed needle used esp for drawing tape through openwork
archaic a dagger
printing a pointed steel tool used for extracting characters when correcting metal type
archaic a long ornamental hairpin

Word Origin for bodkin

C14: probably of Celtic origin; compare Gaelic biodag dagger
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
FEEDBACK