Dobbin

//ˈdɒbɪn// name, noun, slang

name, noun, slang ·Moderate ·High school level

Definitions

Noun
  1. 1
    An old jaded horse. countable, uncountable
  2. 2
    a quiet plodding workhorse wordnet
  3. 3
    Sea gravel mixed with sand. UK, dialectal, uncountable
  4. 4
    Synonym of horse (illegitimate study aid) countable, dated, slang, uncountable
Proper Noun
  1. 1
    A surname originating as a patronymic.
  2. 2
    A pet name given to workhorses, and by extension, a placeholder name used for any workhorse, much like John Q. Public and other such placeholders are used for people.

    "Early automobiles were a menace to old Dobbin"

  3. 3
    An unincorporated community in Montgomery County, Texas, United States.
  4. 4
    An unincorporated community in Grant County, West Virginia, United States.

Synonyms

All synonyms
brood marechargercoltcoursercritterentire

Example

More examples

"Early automobiles were a menace to old Dobbin"

Etymology

Etymology 1

From Dobbin, a common name given to workhorses.

Etymology 2

From Dobb (“a medieval short form of the given name Robert”) + -en; thus archaically equivalent to Bobby. Cognate with English Dobbie.

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Data sourced from Wiktionary, WordNet, CMU, and other open linguistic databases. Updated March 2026.