collywobbles

Valid in Scrabble

Scrabble points
24
Words With Friends
29
Letters
12
Pronunciation
/ˈkɒlɪwɒb(ə)lz/
See all 2 pronunciations
/ˈkɒlɪwɒb(ə)lz/ · /ˈkɑliˌwɑb(ə)lz/

Definition of collywobbles

2 senses · 1 part of speech · etymology included

noun

  1. (British, humorous, informal, plural, plural-only)A stomach ache or an upset stomach.
    “Petunia’s off school today with a touch of the collywobbles.”
    “Collywobbles, the gripes.”
    “I know I have something else to say to you, but unfortunately I awoke this morning with collywobbles, and had to take a small dose of laudanum with the usual consequences of dry throat, intoxicated legs, partial madness and total imbecility; and for the life of me I cannot remember what it is.”
    “"I deeply regret," answered Liza, "but my royal 'ighness 'as got the collywobbles."”
    “The prefect was there again and it was his voice that was saying that he was to get up, that Father Minister had said he was to get up and dress and go to the infirmary. And while he was dressing himself as quickly as he could the prefect said: / ― We must pack off to Brother Michael because we have the collywobbles!”
See all 2 definitions

noun

  1. (British, humorous, informal, plural, plural-only)A stomach ache or an upset stomach.
    “Petunia’s off school today with a touch of the collywobbles.”
    “Collywobbles, the gripes.”
    “I know I have something else to say to you, but unfortunately I awoke this morning with collywobbles, and had to take a small dose of laudanum with the usual consequences of dry throat, intoxicated legs, partial madness and total imbecility; and for the life of me I cannot remember what it is.”
    “"I deeply regret," answered Liza, "but my royal 'ighness 'as got the collywobbles."”
    “The prefect was there again and it was his voice that was saying that he was to get up, that Father Minister had said he was to get up and dress and go to the infirmary. And while he was dressing himself as quickly as he could the prefect said: / ― We must pack off to Brother Michael because we have the collywobbles!”
  2. (British, broadly, humorous, informal, plural, plural-only)Anxiety, fear, uneasiness.
    “I don’t like walking through the forest at night. It gives me the collywobbles.”
    “This business of getting Bill educated has just about given me the collywobbles. You wouldn't think to look at the boy, that he could possibly be such a tragic misfit in school.”

Definitions from Wiktionary, CC BY-SA.

Etymology

Probably from colic (“severe pains that grip the abdomen”) + wobble (“unsteady motion”). Alternatively, it has been suggested that the word derives from colly (“coal dust”) (in the sense of someone becoming ill from breathing in such dust), or that it is a corruption of cholera.

Words you can make from collywobbles

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8-letter words

3 words

7-letter words

12 words

6-letter words

27 words

5-letter words

69 words

4-letter words

88 words

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