What does "cockle" mean?
Any of various edible European bivalve mollusks, of the family Cardiidae, having heart-shaped shells.
Cockle
/ˈkɒkl̩/ noun, verb, slang
noun, verb, slang ·Common ·High school level
Meaning at a glance
- Primary sense: Any of various edible European bivalve mollusks, of the family Cardiidae, having heart-shaped shells.
- Grammar: cockle is listed as noun, verb, slang.
- Nearest alternatives: bivalve, boat, canoe, cardium.
- Usage evidence: 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.
How to use "cockle"
- Start with the primary definition, then check the part of speech before placing the word in a sentence.
- Compare nearby synonyms to make sure "cockle" carries the exact meaning, tone, and strength you need.
- Use the example sentence as a context check. If your sentence uses the word differently, confirm that the grammar still fits.
Meaning check
- Does the word fit the sentence's grammar?
- Does it match the intended tone rather than only the dictionary definition?
- Would a simpler synonym be clearer for the reader?
- Is there enough surrounding context to prevent ambiguity?
Source and review context
This entry combines structured lexical data with WordToolSet review checks. Definitions, examples, synonyms, and usage notes may come from different source tables, so the page is designed to show evidence from more than one angle before you rely on "cockle" in a final draft.
If a word has several senses, prefer the sense that matches your sentence's grammar and surrounding context. A correct definition can still be the wrong choice when the sentence needs a different register, emphasis, or level of specificity.
Before you rely on this definition
Read the first definition as a starting point, then check the example, synonyms, and part of speech before treating "cockle" as the right word for your sentence.
If your draft is formal, technical, persuasive, or sensitive, compare "cockle" with a nearby alternative so the final choice matches both meaning and reader expectation.
Compare nearby meanings
- Use synonyms when you need a softer, stronger, simpler, or more specific word.
- Use antonyms to check the boundary of the meaning and avoid accidental contrast.
- Use the example sentence to confirm the word behaves naturally in context.
- Keep the original wording when a replacement adds complexity without improving precision.
Definition decision workflow
1. Identify the role
Check whether "cockle" is acting as noun, verb, slang in your sentence. A definition is only useful when the grammar matches the way the word is being used.
2. Test the nearest option
Compare it with "bivalve" and other nearby choices to see whether the sentence needs a softer, stronger, or more familiar word.
3. Confirm with context
Use the example sentence below as an evidence check, then read your own sentence out loud to catch tone or rhythm problems.
Review note: Definition pages are checked for source coverage, sentence evidence, synonym support, and editorial insight before they are treated as approval-ready pages. If the evidence is too thin, the page remains available to users but is kept out of the approval-facing indexed inventory.
Final meaning check
Before publishing a sentence with "cockle", ask whether the word helps the reader understand the idea faster. A precise word should reduce confusion, not simply make the sentence look more polished.
When the definition, synonym evidence, and example context point in the same direction, the word is usually a safer choice. When they conflict, revise the sentence or choose a clearer alternative.
Definitions
Noun
- 1 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."
- 2 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."
- 3 A £10 note; a tenner. Cockney, slang
- 4 common edible, burrowing European bivalve mollusk that has a strong, rounded shell with radiating ribs wordnet
- 5 The shell of such a mollusk.
Show 8 more definitions
- 6 common edible European bivalve wordnet
- 7 A wrinkle, pucker
- 8 A defect in sheepskin; firm dark nodules caused by the bites of keds on live sheep broadly
- 9 Chiefly in cockles of someone's heart: a person's innermost feelings. figuratively, in-plural
- 10 The dome of a heating furnace. UK
- 11 The fire chamber of a furnace. UK
- 12 A kiln for drying hops; an oast. UK
- 13 The mineral black tourmaline or schorl. Cornwall, UK
Verb
- 1 To cause to contract into wrinkles or ridges, as some kinds of cloth after a wetting; to pucker. transitive
- 2 To wobble, shake; to be unsteady. Midlands, Northern-England, Scotland
"Israel Wilde arrived last, his ankle swollen and already berry-blue after cockling at the top of Hatherself Scout."
- 3 to gather something into small wrinkles or folds wordnet
- 4 stir up (water) so as to form ripples wordnet
Example
"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."
Common questions
What is a synonym for "cockle"?
Common synonyms include: bivalve, boat, canoe, cardium, cocker, corrugate.
How do you use "cockle" in a sentence?
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.
How do you pronounce "cockle"?
Pronounced /ˈkɒkl̩/.
Etymology
Etymology 1
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.
Etymology 2
From Middle English cockil, cokil, cokylle, from Old English coccel (“darnel”), of unknown origin, perhaps from a diminutive of Latin coccus (“berry”).
Etymology 3
Origin uncertain.
Etymology 4
Rhyming slang, from cock and hen for ten.