cob

1. (East Anglia) A gull, especially the black-backed gull (Larus marinus); also spelled cobb.Examples: "Here is also the pica marina or seapye many sorts of Lari, seamewes & cobs."; "On Saturday the 28th we saw a whale, two sea-wolves, and two penguins; in the afternoon there appeared great numbers of ospreys, and sea-cobs, and we met with some sea-grass, with long leaves."; "We found here a species of cob, with a grey head, red beak and feet, very much resembling our larus ribibundus…."East-Angliacountableuncountable

2. (Midlands) A round, often crusty roll or loaf of bread.Examples: "The cob was a cracknel or simnel made of fine flour."; "…I sat there and broke the crust of my cob of bread."; "I want to do a manual job / Even bake a lovely bread cob"Midlandscountableuncountable

3. (uncountable) A building material consisting of clay, sand, straw, water, and earth, similar to adobe; also called cobb, rammed earth or pisé.Examples: "The poore Cotager contenteth himſelfe with Cob for his wals, and Thatch for his couering…."; "The walls are of cob, the external ones being about 2 feet 8 inches thick, and rest on a stone foundation."; "…cob falls outside the building code, so planners would want documentation of how the adobelike material performs."uncountable

4. (obsolete) One who is eminent, great, large, or rich.Examples: "I ſaw fleſh bluddie toe ſlauer, / When the cob had maunged the gobets foule garbaged haulfe quick."; "But I would not haue a few rich cobs to get into their clowches almoſt whole countries, ſo as the poore can haue no releefe by them."; "There comes no good of greedie Cobs:"countableobsoleteuncountable

5. (obsolete) The head of a herring.Examples: "The first red herring that was broil’d in Adam and Eve’s kitchen, do I fetch my pedigree from, by the Harrot’s book. His Cob was my great-great-mighty-great grandfather."; "…not a Scrap of him, but the Cobs of the two Herrings, the Fiſhermen had eaten, remained of him…."; "…he can come bragging hither with foure white Herrings (at’s taile) in blue Coates without roes in their bellies, but I may ſtarue ere he giue me ſo much as a cob."countableobsoleteuncountable

6. (obsolete) A tower or small castle on top of a hill.Examples: "Perhaps though in time one may make them to yield, But 'tis pretty'st Cob-Castle e'er I beheld."; "There is a small cob on this hill by some supposed to have been a fort: if it was, it must have been a very small one; tho' I rather take it for a tumulus than an exploratory tower."countableobsoleteuncountable