lob
/lɑb/verb, noun
lob is spelled L-O-B: 3 letters and one syllable. It appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,649th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, lob means “To throw or hit a ball into the air in a high arc” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in lob?
| Letters | 3: L-O-B |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 1 (from its American pronunciation) |
| In writing | about once in every 1 million words; the 29,649th most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
| Rhymes with |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.
How common is lob?
Lob appears about once in every 1 million words in written English, the 29,649th most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce lob?
- UK /lɒb/
- British /lɔb/
- US /lɑb/
Lob has one syllable (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-lob.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
What rhymes with lob?
The 12 most written words on PlainSpell end in the same sounds as lob from its last stressed vowel (/ɑb/):
Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).
Forms of lob
- lobs present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- lobbing participle, present
- lobbed participle, past
- the lob
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does lob mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To throw or hit a ball into the air in a high arc.
The guard lobbed a pass just over the defender.
- 2
colloquialTo throw.
- 3
colloquialTo put, place.
Lob the bacon in the pot.
- 4
To hit, kick, or throw a ball over another player in a game.
- 5
obsoleteTo let fall heavily or lazily.
- 6
AustraliainformalTo reach or arrive at (a place).
noun
- 1
A pass or stroke which arcs high into the air.
The guard launched a desperate lob over the outstretched arms of the defender.
- 2
obsoleteA country bumpkin; a yokel.
- 3
A lump.
- 4
A nugget (of gold); (hence), a quantity of money; a haul; booty.
- 5
A clumsy person.
- 6
The person who comes last in a race.
- 7
A lob-worm.
- 8
A fish, the European pollock.
- 9
A long bob haircut.
- 10
UKobsoleteslangA form of fraud in which a person asks for change in a shop, palms some of the coins, and tells the shopkeeper that he has not given them enough.
noun
- 1
Abbreviation of large object.
- 2
Initialism of line of business.
- 3
Initialism of limit order book, an order book of limit orders.
- 4
Initialism of live on board (i.e. liveaboard)
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Lob in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | lancer haut, lancer en chandelle, lobber, faire un lob , lob , LOB |
| German | lupfen, lobben , Lob |
| Spanish | globo |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does lob come from?
First attested late 16th c. in the sense "allow or cause to dangle, hang," from sense 2.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).