bobble

Everyday

1. (UK) A bobble is a small soft ball of wool on top of a woolly hat or on the end of a string; a bobble hat has one. tree →
2. A bobble is also a tiny ball of fluff that forms on an old jumper or blanket after a lot of wear (also called a pill). tree →
3. (verb) To bobble means to bounce or move up and down unsteadily, like a ball on bumpy ground. tree →
4. (US, sport) To bobble the ball means to fumble it, to fail to catch or hold it cleanly. tree →

In the lessons

In everyday life it comes in winter clothing (bobble hat) and in clothes that look old (a bobbly jumper). In sport commentary a ball bobbles on a bumpy pitch, and in American baseball and football a player bobbles a catch. Phrases: bobble hat, bobble on top, the ball bobbled.

Examples

• Grandma knitted me a red hat with a big bobble on top. tree →
• My old jumper is covered in little bobbles. tree →
• Put on your bobble hat, it's freezing outside. tree →
• The ball bobbled over the bumpy grass and the goalie missed it. tree →
• The shortstop bobbled the ball and the runner reached first base. tree →
• The toy boat bobbled on the waves. tree →
• She uses a little shaver to take the bobbles off her cardigan. tree →

Note

Countable noun: a bobble, bobbles. Verb past form: bobbled (double b, then -le, drop e: bobbling). Adjective: bobbly (a bobbly jumper). In the US a hat bobble is usually called a pom-pom, and a hat with one a knit cap or beanie with a pom-pom. Do not confuse with «bubble» (a ball of air in liquid) or «bauble» (a shiny decoration).