Word
cole
US/ˈkoʊɫ/
UK/kˈəʊl/
Definitions
01cabbage-like plants
n. a general name for plants like cabbage, kale, or broccoli.
n. any of various plants belonging to the genus Brassica, especially those cultivated as vegetables or for oilseed.
“The farmer grew different types of cole, including kale and rape, for his animals.”
“The study examined the resistance of various cole crops to common pests that typically plague the Brassica family during early spring.”
Technical
Usage
Often used as a collective term in agricultural or botanical contexts.
02cabbage
n. an old word for a cabbage.
n. a historical or dialectal term for the common cabbage.
“In the old story, the peasant ate a simple meal of boiled cole and bread.”
“The medieval manuscript details the cultivation of cole in monastery gardens, highlighting its importance as a staple winter vegetable.”
Archaic · Dialect
Teaching tip
In modern English, this survives mostly in compound words like 'coleslaw' or 'coleseed'.
Synonyms
03a stack of hay
n. a small pile or stack of hay in a field.
n. a small, temporary stack or stook of hay gathered together during harvest.
“The workers gathered the dried grass into a tall cole before the rain started.”
“Across the Highland fields, the farmers were busy building coles to protect the summer hay from the impending Atlantic storms.”
Dialect
Teaching tip
This sense is specific to Scottish English and is rarely understood elsewhere.
Etymology
The surname is variously from: # A nickname from Old English col (“coal, coal-black”), # A patronymic from Nicholas (see also Coles, Colson, Colle). # A variation of Cowell (which itself has several origins). # As an Irish and Scottish Gaelic surname, variant of McCool. # As a German surname, Americanized from Kohl. # As a Dutch surname, Americanized from Kool. # As a French surname, Americanized/calqued from Charbonneau, influenced by the first sense.
Etymology adapted from Wiktionary, available under CC BY-SA 4.0.
Scan code
englishreference.com/q/cole