hobble

[hob-uhl]

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR hobble ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object), hob·bled, hob·bling.

to walk lamely; limp.

to proceed irregularly and haltingly: His verses hobble with their faulty meters.

verb (used with object), hob·bled, hob·bling.

to cause to limp: His tight shoes hobbled him.

to fasten together the legs of (a horse, mule, etc.) by short lengths of rope to prevent free motion.

to impede; hamper the progress of.

noun

an act of hobbling; an uneven, halting gait; a limp.

a rope, strap, etc., used to hobble an animal.

hobbles, a leg harness for controlling the gait of a pacer.

Archaic. an awkward or difficult situation.

Nearby words

Origin of hobble

1300–50; Middle English hobelen, apparently akin to hob protuberance, uneven ground, and to Dutch hobbelen, German hoppeln to jolt

Related formshob·bler, nounun·hob·bled, adjectiveun·hob·bling, adjective

Synonyms for hobble

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR hobble ON THESAURUS.COM

5. hinder, restrict, frustrate, cramp.

Antonyms for hobble

5. aid, assist, benefit.

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

Examples from the Web for hobbled

And it was the most that could squeak through a filibuster- hobbled Senate.
The Indispensible Nancy Pelosi|Robert Shrum|March 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
The best laid plans: Instead it was Mitt himself who came up lame, hobbled and lacerated by his own tripping tongue.
The Ugly American: Mitt Romney’s Disastrous Overseas Excursion|Robert Shrum|July 31, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Mitt Romney is a two-time loser this week, hobbled by Democratic attacks and friendly fire from his own side.
Blasts from the Past Wound Romney|Howard Kurtz|May 18, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Netanyahu can no longer claim to be hobbled on the peace front by coalition politics and resistance from his minority parties.
How to Revive The Peace Process: A Modest Proposal|Letty Cottin Pogrebin|May 9, 2012|DAILY BEAST

Lawmakers “are leaving town just as one of the most important agencies in Washington is hobbled,” Goldfarb says.
The Shutdown Safety Scare|Eve Conant|August 4, 2011|DAILY BEAST
Leaving Umslopogaas to hold the horses, I hobbled to the spring and drank deep of its sweet waters.
Allan Quatermain|H. Rider Haggard
Four times he hobbled across the floor, which meant he had come afoot the whole distance, traveling only at night.
Lords of the North|A. C. Laut
As we neared the village a dozen curs came rushing out; some of them were hobbled so as to prevent their chasing the deer.
In Search of a Siberian Klondike|Homer B. Hulbert
She hobbled to where a lamp set, with chimney smoked, and upon which a crack had been patched with paper.
The Forged Note|Oscar Micheaux
Terrified, with broken teeth and feet, it hobbled off from the scene of the encounter, and soon appeared on the roof of the rick.
Debts of Honor|Maurus Jkai

British Dictionary definitions for hobbled

hobble

verb

(intr) to walk with a lame awkward movement

(tr) to fetter the legs of (a horse) in order to restrict movement

to progress unevenly or with difficulty

(tr) to hamper or restrict (the actions or scope of a person, organization, etc)

noun

a strap, rope, etc, used to hobble a horse

a limping gait

British dialect a difficult or embarrassing situation

a castrated ferret

Also (for senses 2, 5): hopple

Derived Formshobbler, noun

Word Origin for hobble

C14: probably from Low German; compare Flemish hoppelen, Middle Dutch hobbelen to stammer

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 hobbled

hobble

c.1300, hoblen "to rock back and forth, toss up and down," probably related to its Dutch cognate hobbelen (which, however, is not recorded before late 15c.).

Meaning "to walk lamely" is from c.1400. Transitive sense of "tie the legs (of an animal)" first recorded 1831, probably an alteration of 16c. hopple, cognate with Flemish hoppelen "to rock, jump," which also is related to Dutch hobbelen. Sense of "hamper, hinder" is c.1870. Related: Hobbled; hobbling. The noun is 1727, from the verb.

hobble

verb (used without object), hob·bled, hob·bling.

verb (used with object), hob·bled, hob·bling.

noun

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Origin of hobble

Synonyms for hobble

Antonyms for hobble

Examples from the Web for hobbled

hobble

verb

noun

Word Origin for hobble

hobble