Meaning & use
hobnailed boots
Last updated
Meaning
nounplural
Heavy boots with the soles studded with short, thick nails to make them last longer and grip the ground.
Grammar: Plural, like most words for footwear in pairs: the boots were heavy.
Patterns
- wearing hobnailed boots
The farm workers wore hobnailed boots on the stony tracks.
His hobnailed boots rang on the cobbles.
A museum display showed a pair of hobnailed boots from the 1900s.
Common combinations
- wear hobnailed boots
- Miners used to wear hobnailed boots.
- in hobnailed boots
- He marched across the floor in hobnailed boots.
- pair of hobnailed boots
- She found a pair of hobnailed boots in the attic.
- clatter of hobnailed boots
- We heard the clatter of hobnailed boots on the stone.
- heavy hobnailed boots
- The soldiers wore heavy hobnailed boots.
Synonyms and how they differ
- work boots
- Work boots is the modern general term, while hobnailed boots specifically have studded soles and are old-fashioned.
- hiking boots
- Hiking boots have rubber tread rather than nails and are made for walking, not heavy labour.
- army boots
- Army boots are issued to soldiers and today have rubber soles, unlike hobnailed boots.
Word family
Commonly confused: hobnailed boots or hobnob?
hobnailed boots vs hobnob
To hobnob is to mix socially with important people, and it has nothing to do with boots.
Practice
The sound of ____ on the stone floor told the children that the old gamekeeper was coming.
Choose one answer.
Hobnailed boots made a loud clatter on stone. Soft slippers and rubber sandals would make little noise.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “hobnailed boots”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.