hobbledehoy

[ hob-uhl-dee-hoi ]

/ ˈhɒb əl diˌhɔɪ /

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noun

an awkward, ungainly youth.

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Origin of hobbledehoy

1530–40; variant of hoberdyhoy, alliterative compound, equivalent to hoberd (variant of Roberd Robert) + -y² + -hoy for boy (b>h for alliteration; see hob²)

Words nearby hobbledehoy

Hobbism, hobbit, hobbits, hobble, hobblebush, hobbledehoy, hobble skirt, Hobbs, hobby, hobby farmer, hobbyhorse

How to use hobbledehoy in a sentence

And yet, what a scholars mate, too, to go and be shelved by such a mere hobbledehoy of a fellow as this young man Churchill!'
Babylon, Volume 2 (of 3)|Grant Allen
"Tas the way with them foweners," said the first hobbledehoy sagely.
The Wonderful Visit|Herbert George Wells
A rude hobbledehoy of the St Malo peasant class opened the hut door and stared.
Love's Usuries|Louis Creswicke
A half-wild-looking hobbledehoy boy of fifteen years also joined the group.
A Labrador Doctor|Wilfred Thomason Grenfell

A ragged hobbledehoy stood on the Vanderbilt grounds at Biltmore, mouth open but silent, watching a gardener at work.
Our Southern Highlanders|Horace Kephart

British Dictionary definitions for hobbledehoy

hobbledehoy

/ (ˌhɒbəldɪˈhɔɪ) /

noun

archaic, or dialect a clumsy or bad-mannered youth

Word Origin for hobbledehoy

C16: from earlier hobbard de hoy, of uncertain origin

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