Dictionary.com
Thesaurus.com
Showing results for knobby. Search instead for knobbiest.
Synonyms

knobby

American  
[nob-ee] / ˈnɒb i /

adjective

knobbier, knobbiest
  1. full of or covered with knobs.

    the knobby trunk of a tree.

  2. shaped like a knob.


knobby British  
/ ˈnɒbɪ /

adjective

  1. having or covered with small knobs; knobbly

"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

Other Word Forms

Etymology

Origin of knobby

First recorded in 1535–45; knob + -y 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

See Examples For:

He fidgets with a pair of eyeglasses and points a knobby index finger to underscore a point, jiggles his leg restlessly and, at one point, mimes playing guitar.

From The Wall Street Journal Jul. 6, 2026

“That’s good,” he said, before pointing a knobby finger at me.

From Slate Oct. 24, 2024

Whatever it is studio technicians do seated at those knobby soundboards, Payne achieves with acting and characterization.

From New York Times Oct. 26, 2023

The spike proteins, which form the knobby protrusions coming off the main body of the virus, are like a key that the virus uses to unlock our cells, which is how a new infection begins.

From Salon Sep. 14, 2023

“That girl—” She shakes her knobby finger at me.

From "The Help" by Kathryn Stockett

He says that the horn-encrusted brow of T. imperator consisted of spindle-shaped lumps while T. rex’s horns were knobbier.

From New York Times Jul. 25, 2022

The Martian was a twisting, squirming, raging, biting, clawing, kicking wild tangle of knobby knees and knobbier elbows.

From The Next Time We Die by Williams, Robert Moore

He looked larger and knobbier than ever and, if anything, more embarrassed.

From At Good Old Siwash by Fitch, George

With an unerring eye the vendor pounced on the smallest and knobbiest apple in the tray and offered that.

From The Deaves Affair by Footner, Hulbert

Vocabulary.com logo
by dictionary.com

Dictionary.com's Learning Companion

Go beyond just looking up words.
Remember them forever with VocabTrainer.

Start training