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dobby

[ dob-ee ]
/ ˈdɒb i /
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noun, plural dob·bies.
British Dialect. a fatuous person; fool.
Textiles.
  1. an attachment on a loom, used in weaving small patterns.
  2. Also called dobby weave . a small geometric or floral pattern produced by this attachment.
  3. a fabric having such a pattern.
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Origin of dobby

1685–95; akin to dial. dovie stupid, imbecile, derivative of dove to doze, dote, Old English dofian, dobian; cognate with German toben to rage; compare Old English dobende decrepit
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use dobby in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for dobby

dobby
/ (ˈdɒbɪ) /

noun plural -bies
an attachment to a loom, used in weaving small figures

Word Origin for dobby

C17: perhaps from Dobby, pet form of Robert
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
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