I. ˈbäb verb
( bobbed ; bobbed ; bobbing ; bobs )
Etymology: Middle English bobben, perhaps of imitative origin
transitive verb
1.
a. obsolete : strike , pommel , buffet
b. : to strike with a quick light blow : tap , rap
2.
a. : to move with a bob : cause to move down and up or up and down in a short quick movement
bob the head
b. : to move with any sudden quick movement (as back and forth or in and out)
bob your head in and out of the window
3. : to polish with a bob : buff
intransitive verb
1.
a.
(1) : to move down and up or up and down suddenly and briefly and often repeatedly
a cork bobbing in the water
a child bobbing along on a pogo stick
(2) : to emerge, arise, or appear suddenly or unexpectedly
a few minutes later it bobbed free of the boiling water — Time
— usually used with up
the same question bobs up at each town meeting
after months in hiding he bobbed up in Paris
b. : to nod the head or curtsy briefly
a little girl bobbing before a visitor
c. : to try to seize with the teeth (as an apple floating in a tub of water or hanging on a string) — used with for
bob for apples at a Halloween party
d. : to move with any sudden quick movement
he bobbed to the telephone like a puppet — Carolyn Hannay
e. : to move or go from place to place fitfully — often used with around
bobbing around town for a day or two
small birds bobbing all over the yard
2. Scotland : to dance a bob
II. noun
( -s )
1.
a. : a short quick down-and-up motion
a bob of the head
her curtsy was a mere bob
b. Scotland : any of several dances
2. obsolete : a blow, jog, tap, or rap especially with the fist
3. obsolete : taunt , gibe
4.
a. : a modification of the coursing order in change ringing
b. : a method of change ringing using a bob
bob major
5. : a small polishing wheel of solid felt or leather with rounded edges
III. transitive verb
( bobbed ; bobbed ; bobbing ; bobs )
Etymology: Middle English bobben, from Middle French bober to deceive, from bobe deceit
1. obsolete : deceive , fool , cheat
2. obsolete : to take by fraud : filch
IV. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English bobbe, perhaps of Celtic origin; akin to Irish Gaelic baban tassel, tuft, Scottish Gaelic, bobbin
1.
a. : a bunch or cluster: as
(1) Scotland : a small bouquet of flowers : nosegay
(2) now chiefly dialect : a bunch of leaves, flowers, or fruit
red clover bobs
a bob of grapes
(3) : a wad of rags, bait, feathers, or hooks used in angling
b. : a knob, knot, twist, or curl especially of ribbons, yarn, or hair
c. : a wig with tight horizontal or loose vertical curls
d. : a horse's docked tail : bobtail
e. : a very short to shoulder-length haircut on a woman or child
2. archaic : a grub, worm, or beetle especially as used for bait in angling
3. : a ball or weight especially at the end of something: as
a. archaic : a pendant worn as an ornament (as in an earring or attached to a necklace)
b. : the weight at the bottom end of a pendulum
c. : the weight on a plumb line
d. : float I 4
e. : any weighting matter attached to the tail of a kite to steady it
4.
a. archaic : the refrain of a song ; specifically : a short and abrupt refrain often of two syllables
b. : a single very short line usually of two or three syllables occurring in a series of longer lines in English verse
5.
a. : clipping
the animal would be earmarked; that is, assorted crops, bits, and bobs would have been carved out of his long ears — W.F.Harris
b. : a small usually insignificant piece : trifle
the bobs and trinkets of criticism — Laurence Sterne
V. intransitive verb
( bobbed ; bobbed ; bobbing ; bobs )
Etymology: bob (IV) (grub)
: to angle with a bob especially through the ice
VI. transitive verb
( bobbed ; bobbed ; bobbing ; bobs )
Etymology: bob (IV) (knob of hair, bobtail)
1. : to cut shorter : dock , crop — sometimes used with off
a show horse with a beribboned mane and bobbed tail
bob off a dog's tail
prune and bob shrubbery
2. : to cut (hair) in the style of a bob
VII. noun
( plural bob )
Etymology: perhaps from Bob, nickname for the name Robert
slang Britain : shilling
VIII. noun
( -s )
Etymology: back-formation from bobsled
1. : a single pair of sled runners on which the forward ends of logs may be loaded in logging
2.
[by shortening]
: bobsled
IX. verb
( bobbed ; bobbed ; bobbing ; bobs )
intransitive verb
1. : to ride on a bobsled as a recreation
2. : to transport logs on a bob
transitive verb
: to transport (as logs) on a bob
X. noun
( -s )
Etymology: by shortening
: bobwhite