as in elf
an imaginary being usually having a small human form and magical powers
the metal cobalt gets its name from the medieval Germanic belief that its appearance in silver ore was the handiwork of mischievous, thieving kobolds
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Recent Examples of kobold
Monster Vault allows the designers to take a crack at some classic creatures like kobolds, goblins, demons and dragons.
—
Rob Wieland, Forbes, 18 Sep. 2024
This element takes its name from the German word kobelt, signifying kobolds—gnomes and goblins thought to haunt mines.
—Sanjana Curtis, Scientific American, 4 July 2023
The word cobalt comes from the German word kobold, meaning goblin.
—Caroline Delbert, Popular Mechanics, 18 Aug. 2022
Otherworldly cities modeled on real ones have been a standby of fantasy, from Superman’s Metropolis through China Miéville’s Un Lun Dun to Michael Swanwick’s Babel, with its haints and kobolds, ethnic politics and human ward-heelers.
—Tom Shippey, WSJ, 16 Mar. 2018
Rob Wieland, Forbes, 18 Sep. 2024
This element takes its name from the German word kobelt, signifying kobolds—gnomes and goblins thought to haunt mines.
—Sanjana Curtis, Scientific American, 4 July 2023
The word cobalt comes from the German word kobold, meaning goblin.
—Caroline Delbert, Popular Mechanics, 18 Aug. 2022
Otherworldly cities modeled on real ones have been a standby of fantasy, from Superman’s Metropolis through China Miéville’s Un Lun Dun to Michael Swanwick’s Babel, with its haints and kobolds, ethnic politics and human ward-heelers.
—Tom Shippey, WSJ, 16 Mar. 2018
Recent Examples of Synonyms for kobold
Noun
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In this fiction, the Crusades were not waged against Moors, but against elves – a race said to devour the flesh of humans, among other atrocities that are neither confirmed nor denied by the end of the story.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes.com,
17 May 2025
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After a season filled with villainous elves, the resurrection of Kandy Muse's iconically hideous pockets look, and budding relationships in the Werk Room (and the bedroom), RuPaul's Drag Race season 17 crowned a winner.—
EW.com,
EW.com,
19 Apr. 2025
Noun
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Lisa’s Joker is part motivational speaker, part chaos goblin.—
Clayton Davis,
Variety,
5 May 2025
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From its protrusible jaw to its ability to hunt in every environment, the goblin shark exemplifies adaptation to the extremes.—
Scott Travers,
Forbes,
30 Dec. 2024
Noun
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Tell me a little bit about the technical side of filming a dwarf and an elf together.—
Devan Coggan,
EW.com,
13 Oct. 2022
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Other new characters include Disa, the first female dwarf ever shown in the Lord of the Rings series.—
Ethan Millman,
Rolling Stone,
22 July 2022
Noun
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For instance, people used to hang iron on their doors at night to keep faeries and demons out of their homes (talismans) and a knock on the door in the middle of the night was to be ignored, for surely some evil spirit was lurking outside.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes,
27 Nov. 2024
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The Unseelie Court is the bastion of malevolent faeries who harm humans for their amusement or to exact revenge.—
Erik Kain,
Forbes,
27 Nov. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Kobold.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/kobold. Accessed 4 Jun. 2025.
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