Hob

Podcast 1 · Introduction

Hob

A documentary-style narration: origin, meaning, and feel.

Part of speech

noun

Pronunciation

hob  /hɒb/

Definition

Primarily British: the flat cooking surface of a cooker or stove, consisting of gas burners or electric heating elements on which pots and pans are placed; also an archaic or regional term for a small wooden or metal peg used in games; in folklore, a hob or hobgoblin is a household spirit.

Plain meaning

A hob is the cooking surface on top of a cooker or stove — the part with the gas rings or electric hotplates where you put your pots and pans. This is the standard British English term for what Americans call a stovetop or burner. The word also has older uses in folklore and as a peg in traditional games.

Register

British English, neutral and everyday. Hob is the standard term in British English cooking contexts. Americans hearing the word in a British context should understand it as stovetop. In the hobgoblin or folklore sense, the word is archaic or literary.