bobby socks

American  

[bob-ee-soks] / ˈbɒb iˌsɒks /

Also bobsox or bobby sox,

plural noun

1. socks that reach above the ankle and are sometimes folded down to the ankle.

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adjective

1. indicating or associated with the wearing of bobbysocks; adolescent.

   strictly a bobbysocks crowd; the bobbysocks generation.

bobby socks British  

plural noun

1. ankle-length socks worn by teenage girls, esp in the US in the 1940s

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Etymology

Origin of bobby socks

1940–45, bobby (for bobbed ² ( def. ), altered by association with bobby pin ) + socks ( def. )

Example Sentences

Scrappy Marie from Glasgow was edged out by Lulu, with her chipmunk smile, sculpted hair and bobby socks.

From BBC • Sep. 23, 2025

As for making yourself unpopular, you might as well show up to a university lecture wearing Christopher Robin shorts and white bobby socks as be accused of anthropomorphism.

From Salon • Oct. 22, 2022

“I would wear brown tights and white bobby socks and I would gallop around the house.”

From Washington Post • Jul. 28, 2022

She was Jane Katz, 67, who has been teaching New Yorkers how to swim since the bobby socks era.

From New York Times • Aug. 1, 2010

She’s about six years old, in a plaid jumper dress, white T-shirt, bobby socks and shoes, her hair loose from its braids, right hand gripping something against her chest.

From "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks" by Rebecca Skloot