COCKLE Definition & Meaning

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cockle

[ kok-uhl ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

any bivalve mollusk of the genus Cardium, having somewhat heart-shaped, radially ribbed valves, especially C. edule, the common edible species of Europe.
any of various allied or similar mollusks.
cockleshell ( defs 1, 2 ).
a wrinkle; pucker:
a cockle in fabric.
a small, crisp candy of sugar and flour, bearing a motto.

verb (used without object)

cockled, cockling.

to contract into wrinkles; pucker:
This paper cockles easily.
to rise in short, irregular waves; ripple:
The waves cockled along the shore.

verb (used with object)

cockled, cockling.

to cause to wrinkle, pucker, or ripple:
The wind cockled the water.

cockle

[ kok-uhl ]

Phonetic (Standard)IPA

noun

a weed, as the darnel Lolium temulentum, or rye grass, L. perenne.

cockle

/ ˈ��ɒ��ə�� /

noun

any sand-burrowing bivalve mollusc of the family Cardiidae, esp Cardium edule ( edible cockle ) of Europe, typically having a rounded shell with radiating ribs
any of certain similar or related molluscs
short for cockleshell
a wrinkle or puckering, as in cloth or paper
a small furnace or stove
cockles of one's heart
one's deepest feelings (esp in the phrase warm the cockles of one's heart )

verb

to contract or cause to contract into wrinkles

cockle

/ ˈ��ɒ��ə�� /

noun

any of several plants, esp the corn cockle, that grow as weeds in cornfields

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�y��vlog History and Origins

Origin of cockle¹

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English cokel, cokil(le), from Old French coquille, “shell, shell of a mollusk, mollusk,” from Vulgar Latin ��ǳ��ī�� (unattested), from Latin conchylia, plural of ��ǲԳ��̄��ܳ�, from Greek ��ǲԳ��̄́��ǲ�, equivalent to ��ǲԳ��̄́��(ŧ) “mussel, cockle” + -ion diminutive suffix; compare Old English -cocc in ��ǣ-��ǳ�� literally, “sea-cockle” from Vulgar Latin coccus (unattested) for Latin concha conch

Origin of cockle²

First recorded before 1000; Middle English cok(k)el, Old English coccel; further origin uncertain; perhaps from Late Latin cocculus (unattested), diminutive of coccus “berry, seed” ( coccus ( def ) )

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�y��vlog History and Origins

Origin of cockle¹

C14: from Old French coquille shell, from Latin ��ǲԳ��ӯ��ܳ� shellfish, from Greek konkhulion, diminutive of konkhule mussel; see conch

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Idioms and Phrases

cockles of one's heart, the depths of one's emotions or feelings:
The happy family scene warmed the cockles of his heart.

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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

She was also the subject of a traditional folk song, which tells the story of a fishmongers' daughter who sold cockles and mussels from a wheelbarrow.

From

I considered the monkfish, the mackerel, the cockles.

From

Found in the warm, equatorial waters of the Indo-Pacific, heart cockles have a mutually beneficial relationship with microscopic algae that live inside their tissues.

From

In Swansea, he said he had a "really good experience" with cockles and laverbread and Welsh rarebit.

From

Originally called “motto hearts,” the heart-shaped candies were conceived from a “cockle,” a Civil War-era scalloped candy that contained a wholesome message written on colored paper inside it, akin to a fortune cookie.

From

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

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