cobbler

American  

[kob-ler] / ˈkɒb lər /

noun

1. a person who mends shoes.

2. a deep-dish fruit pie with a rich biscuit crust, usually only on top.

3. an iced drink made of wine or liquor, fruits, sugar, etc.

4. a fabric rejected because of defective dyeing or finishing.

5. Rare. mummichog.

6. Archaic. a clumsy workman.

---

cobbler ¹ British  

/ ˈkɒblə /

noun

1. a sweetened iced drink, usually made from fruit and wine or liqueur

2. a hot dessert made of fruit covered with a rich cakelike crust

---

cobbler ² British  

/ ˈkɒblə /

noun

1. a person who makes or mends shoes

---

cobbler Idioms  

1. see stick to one's last.

---

Etymology

Origin of cobbler

First recorded in 1250–1300; Middle English cobelere, equivalent to cobel, of unknown origin, + -ere -er ¹ ( def. )

Explanation

A cobbler is someone who fixes shoes. A cobbler is also a type of fruit pie. Context is everything with this word! If you give a pie a broken shoe, don’t expect results. Cobblers mend shoes. If your heel is falling off or there’s a rip in your shoe, a cobbler can help you out. These days, people are more likely to buy a new pair of shoes than fix an old one, but cobblers used to be very common. A cobbler is also a delicious pie with rich biscuit dough on top and fruit underneath. Apple cobbler and peach cobbler are extra yummy with ice cream on top.

Example Sentences

“Girl dessert,” meanwhile, can either refer to a single-serving recipe for, say, peach cobbler or chocolate cake, or to an array of different treats—like popcorn, chocolate and candy—combined in a bowl.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 14, 2026

In “The Black Bonspiel of Willie MacCrimmon,” which was also adapted for television, a cobbler from a small town in rural Alberta strikes a deal with the devil to trade his soul for curling success.

From Los Angeles Times • Dec. 28, 2025

Francis came into the collection a few years after the 2008 death of Pasquale Di Fabrizio, an Italian cobbler known in Los Angeles as the "shoemaker to the stars."

From Barron's • Oct. 26, 2025

A cobbler in Kuwait, he found out about the incident while he was thousands of miles away from home.

From BBC • Sep. 6, 2024

The caller at four thirty wants to know if I have any good cobbler recommendations and without even bothering to answer I recite the Tremont exchange and connect that caller to the taxi company.

From "The Brightwood Code" by Monica Hesse