cockle

¹cock·le

noun \ˈkä-kəl\

Definition of COCKLE

: any of several weedy plants of the pink family; especially : corn cockle

Origin of COCKLE

Middle English, from Old English coccel

First Known Use: before 12th century

Other Seed Plant Terms

aubergine, box, bramble, briar, composite, perpetual, pulse, trefoil

Rhymes with COCKLE

coccal

²cockle

noun

Definition of COCKLE

1

: any of various chiefly marine bivalve mollusks (family Cardiidae) having a shell with convex radially ribbed valves; especially : a common edible European bivalve (Cerastoderma edule syn. Cardium edule)

2

: cockleshell

Origin of COCKLE

Middle English cokille, from Middle French coquille shell, modification of Latin conchylia, plural of conchylium, from Greek konchylion, from konchē conch

First Known Use: 14th century

Other Food Terms

Reuben, calamari, chuck, curry, edamame, foie gras, hummus, leaven, nonpareil, peel

³cockle

noun

Definition of COCKLE

: pucker, wrinkle

— cockle verb

Origin of COCKLE

Middle English kokell, ultimately from Middle French coquillé wavy or rounded like a shell, from coquille

First Known Use: 15th century

cockle

noun    (Concise Encyclopedia)

Great heart cockle (Dinocardium robustum)—Harry Rogers

Any of approximately 250 species (family Cardiidae) of marine bivalves distributed worldwide. They range in diameter from about 0.5 in. (1 cm) to about 6 in. (15 cm). The two valves of the shell are equal in size and shape and range in colour from brown to red or yellow. Most species live just below the low-tide line, though some have been obtained from depths of more than 1,500 ft (500 m) or in the intertidal zone. Many species are marketed commercially for their meat.

Variants of COCKLE

cockle or heart clam