cockle
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cockle¹
- /ˈkɒkl̩/ UK
- /ˈkɑk(ə)l/ US
Rhymes with -ɒkəl
Where it comes from
From Middle English cokel, cokkel, kokkel, cocle, of uncertain origin. Perhaps a diminutive of Middle English cokke, cok (“cockle”), from Old English cocc (found in sǣcocc (“cockle”)) + -le; or perhaps from Old French coquille, from Vulgar Latin *cocchilia, from conchylia, from Ancient Greek κογχύλιον (konkhúlion), diminutive of κογχύλη (konkhúlē, “mussel”), of Pre-Greek substrate origin.
noun cockles
- Any of various edible European bivalve mollusks, of the family Cardiidae, having heart-shaped shells. His wife, a small woman who walked always on high heels, borrowed Gerhardie's primus stove several times a day to cook her husband gargantuan meals of cockles, mussels, snails, and other such unpalatables.
- The shell of such a mollusk.
- A wrinkle, pucker
- A defect in sheepskin; firm dark nodules caused by the bites of keds on live sheep
- Chiefly in cockles of someone's heart: a person's innermost feelings.
- The dome of a heating furnace.
- The fire chamber of a furnace.
- A kiln for drying hops; an oast.
- The mineral black tourmaline or schorl.
verb cockles · cockling · cockled
- To cause to contract into wrinkles or ridges, as some kinds of cloth after a wetting; to pucker.
cockle²
- /ˈkɒkl̩/ UK
- /ˈkɑk(ə)l/ US
Rhymes with -ɒkəl
Where it comes from
From Middle English cockil, cokil, cokylle, from Old English coccel (“darnel”), of unknown origin, perhaps from a diminutive of Latin coccus (“berry”).
noun cockles
-
Any of several field weeds, such as the common corncockle (Agrostemma githago) and darnel ryegrass (Lolium temulentum).
But cockle, spurge, according to their law / Might propagate their kind, with none to awe, / You'd think; a burr had been a treasure trove.
Similar: darnel, false wheat
cockle³
- /ˈkɒkl̩/ UK
- /ˈkɑk(ə)l/ US
Rhymes with -ɒkəl
Where it comes from
Origin uncertain.
verb cockles · cockling · cockled
- To wobble, shake; to be unsteady. Israel Wilde arrived last, his ankle swollen and already berry-blue after cockling at the top of Hatherself Scout.
cockle⁴
- /ˈkɒkl̩/ UK
- /ˈkɑk(ə)l/ US
Rhymes with -ɒkəl
Where it comes from
Rhyming slang, from cock and hen for ten.
noun cockles
- A £10 note; a tenner.
Translations
Every language
noun any of various edible European bivalve mollusks
| Español | berberecho, coquina |
|---|---|
| 한국어 | 꼬막 kkomak |
| 日本語 | 笊貝 zarugai |
| 中文 | 泥蚶 níhān, 鳥蛤 /鸟蛤 niǎogé |
| Português | berbigão |
| Français | coque |
| Deutsch | Herzmuschel |
| Ελληνικά | στρείδι streídi |
| Русский | сердцеви́дка serdcevídka |
noun shell of the cockle
| Ελληνικά | κοχύλι kochýli |
|---|
noun any of several weeds, such as the corn cockle
| Español | cizaña |
|---|---|
| 日本語 | ドクムギ dokumugi |
| Português | joio |
| Français | ivraie enivrante |
| Italiano | loglio |
Talk about this word "cockle." Wiktionary, via Micwyn, micwyn.com/word/cockle. Accessed 6 Nov. 2026. cockle. (n.d.). In Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Retrieved November 6, 2026, from https://micwyn.com/word/cockle "cockle." Wiktionary, via Micwyn. Accessed November 6, 2026. https://micwyn.com/word/cockle.Cite this
@misc{cockle_2026,
title = {cockle},
howpublished = {Wiktionary, via Micwyn},
year = {2026},
url = {https://micwyn.com/word/cockle},
urldate = {2026-11-06}
}
