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Tara2 Posted 6 years ago
Grammar

A corn cob pipe

Isn't 'corn' redundant since 'cob' itself mean 'wood that is made from corn'?

Classmate 2: Yeah! Frosty it is. Frosty the snowman!

[Cheers] [Frosty the snowman, what a happy jolly soul. With a corn cob pipe and a button nose, and two eyes made out of coal.] Frosty the snow-

Professor Hinkle: Come back here, you!

Frosty the snowman cartoon

  

Top answer

Tara2 Isn't 'corn' redundant since 'cob' itself mean 'wood that is made from corn'? I've never heard that definition of 'cob'. There are several definitions of 'cob' in dictionaries, including one about swans and one about horses, so 'corn' helps to distinguish which kind of cob it is.

— CalifJim

  • Tara2 Isn't 'corn' redundant since 'cob' itself mean 'wood that is made from corn'?
  • I've never heard that definition of 'cob'.
  • There are several definitions of 'cob' in dictionaries, including one about swans and one about horses, so 'corn' helps to distinguish which kind of cob it is.
  • Anyway, a lot of times it's spelled as one word corncob .
  • That's just the part that's left over after you remove the kernels of corn that you eat.
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3 Answers
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Tara2Isn't 'corn' redundant since 'cob' itself mean 'wood that is made from corn'?

I've never heard that definition of 'cob'. There are several definitions of 'cob' in dictionaries, including one about swans and one about horses, so 'corn' helps to distinguish which kind of cob it is. Anyway, a lot of times it's spelled as one word corncob. That's

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Tara2Isn't 'corn' redundant since 'cob' itself mean 'wood that is made from corn'?

Redundant or not, "corncob pipe" is what they are normally called (often "corncob" is written as one word). The phrase "cob pipe" does seem to exist, but it is much less common.

(Cross-posted.)

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Tara2Isn't 'corn' redundant since 'cob' itself mean 'wood that is made from corn'?

The OED has fully nine separate entries for nouns spelled "cob". I had never heard of most of them, and that's why I always look these things up there. I am afraid that "wood made from corn" is not among them, though wood is mentioned under the main OED entry "c

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