Meanings
sparable1
comparative more sparable · superlative most sparable
- alternativeAlternative form of spareable.
sparable2
plural sparables
- A small headless nail used in making shoes (especially the heels).
[H]e was sometimes seen disputing with the cobbler, his opposite neighbour, about the charge of two-pence; and refusing to pay Crispin's demand, unless he put three or four more sparables in the heels of the shoes which he had mended twice before!
1828, JT Smith, Nollekens and His Times, Century Hutchinson, published 1986, page 183
Origin
From sparrowbill, in reference to its shape, like a sparrow's beak.
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Greek πρόκα
- πρόκα (próka)shoe nail
Rhymes & wordplay
Anagrams
Cite this entry
sparable. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 2, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sparable
“sparable.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sparable. Accessed November 2, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “sparable,” accessed November 2, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/sparable.
Source: sparable on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.