cockle
1[ kok-uhl ]
/ ˈkɒk əl /
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noun
verb (used without object), cock·led, cock·ling.
to contract into wrinkles; pucker: This paper cockles easily.
to rise in short, irregular waves; ripple: The waves cockled along the shore.
verb (used with object), cock·led, cock·ling.
to cause to wrinkle, pucker, or ripple: The wind cockled the water.
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The rainy weather could not ________ my elated spirits on my graduation day.
Idioms for cockle
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
11350–1400; Middle English cokille<Middle French coqille<Vulgar Latin *cocchīlia,Latin conchylia, plural of conchȳlium<Greek konchȳ́lion, equivalent to konchȳ́l(ē) mussel + -ion diminutive suffix; compare Old English -cocc, in sǣ-cocc literally, sea-cockle <Vulgar Latin *coccus for Latin conchaconch
Definition for cockle (2 of 2)
cockle2
[ kok-uhl ]
/ ˈkɒk əl /
noun
a weed, as the darnel Lolium temulentum, or rye grass, L. perenne.
Origin of cockle
2before 1000; Middle English; Old English coccel
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for cockle
British Dictionary definitions for cockle (1 of 2)
cockle1
/ (ˈkɒkəl) /
noun
verb
to contract or cause to contract into wrinkles
Word Origin for cockle
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
any of several plants, esp the corn cockle, that grow as weeds in cornfields
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition
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