: a member of a fictitious peaceful and genial race of small humanlike creatures that dwell underground
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"What is a hobbit?" wrote J.R.R. Tolkien in the 1937 fantasy novel that introduced Mr. Bilbo Baggins. The author then answered himself: "They are (or were) little people, about half our height, and smaller than the bearded Dwarves.... There is little or no magic about them, except the ordinary everyday sort which helps them to disappear when large stupid folk like you and me come blundering along...." Tolkien tells us that hobbits "are inclined to be fat," and that they "dress in bright colours"; they "have good-natured faces, and deep fruity laughs (especially after dinner)." Tolkien, a professional linguist who taught at Oxford, coined the word hobbit (and many other terms—in fact, a whole new language) for The Hobbit and for his enormously popular series The Lord of the Rings.
Example Sentences
Recent Examples on the WebThis mug says it all, with the kind of affection only a true LOTR fan and hobbit-lover can understand. Mark Stock, Men's Health, 7 Sep. 2022 In case the title wasn't a giveaway, expect some epic battle scenes to commence before the not-so-homebody hobbit, Bilbo, finally concludes his adventure—with a certain ring in tow. Lauren Hubbard, Town & Country, 1 Sep. 2022 But these are the only official, licensed hobbit houses in North America. Rachel King, Fortune, 14 Aug. 2022 Rwandans are notoriously neat, I am told, and the countryside is packed with postage-stamp-size plots, like hobbit gardens, hugging the hillside contours in orderly terraces. Nicola Twilley, The New Yorker, 15 Aug. 2022 While there are no hobbits in the series, there are hobbit ancestors called harfoots, which get some trailer time, as well as a first-ever look at some of Tolkien’s characters from the island kingdom of Númenor, such as Isildur (Maxim Baldry). James Hibberd, The Hollywood Reporter, 14 July 2022 Take Airbnb, which has been known for renting out some of the world’s wackiest properties, from UFO shuttles to above-ground submarines to real-life hobbit holes. Rachel Silva, ELLE Decor, 23 June 2022 Long before Bilbo or Frodo's ancestors settled in the Shire, there were three types of hobbit predecessors: the Harfoots, the Stoors, and the Fallohides. Christian Holub, EW.com, 14 June 2022 Memory is imperfect, as Forth explains in his book, and encounters with a modern-day hobbit can scare the willies out of anyone. Rebecca Coffey, Forbes, 16 May 2022 See More