A lump or piece, especially of coal or mineral ore; a glob or chunk of material.
From Middle English 'gobbe,' possibly from Old French 'gobe' meaning a piece or chunk. Related to 'gobbet.' The word describes a discrete lump of material.
Medieval miners used 'gobbe' as technical jargon for coal nuggets—this humble word appears in mining accounts from the 1400s, making it one of the oldest technical terms still occasionally used in mining operations today!
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