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The metallic element "cobalt" ultimately draws its name from folklore. In Middle High German, "kobolt" denoted a usually helpful household elf that engaged in nasty pranks only when it was offended. Later, early Modern German Kobold came to refer to a variety of less helpful goblins inhabiting fields and mountains. The variant "Kobolt" in the 16th century was applied by German miners to ores containing the metal cobalt, which they considered to be worthless; they believed that mountain goblins had spoiled adjacent silver ores, or had stolen the silver within the ore. The metal itself in relatively pure form was not produced and described until the 17th century, when "cobalt," with its first letter influenced by New Latin cobaltum, became part of the international language of science.
Examples of cobalt in a Sentence
Mrigakshi Dixit, Interesting Engineering, 18 May 2026
Prepare to be awestruck during your first view of Crater Lake, a massive cobalt waterway flanked by a dome of steep crag.
—Stephanie Vermillion, Travel + Leisure, 17 May 2026
The International Energy Agency estimated that demand for nickel, cobalt, and rare earth elements could more than double by 2040.
—Jake Angelo, Fortune, 15 May 2026
As if that hand wasn't eye-catching enough thanks to the bling, manicurist Mei Kawajiri actually dipped her hand in cobalt blue latex paint and completed the look with Chillhouse's cobalt shade.
—Michelle Lee, PEOPLE, 6 May 2026
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Cite this Entry
“Cobalt.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/cobalt. Accessed 22 May. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
from German Kobalt "cobalt," an altered form of Kobold, literally, "goblin"; so called because its appearance in silver ore was thought to have been the work of goblins who left it in place of silver which they stole
Medical Definition
cobalt
noun
