tommyknocker

T1O1M3M3Y4K5N1O1C3K5E1R1
/ˈtɒmiːnɒkə/

noun

A mythical creature, like a brownie or leprechaun, believed to live in underground tunnels; later associated with dead miners.

Scrabble 29
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Meanings

nountommyknocker (plural tommyknockers)

plural tommyknockers

  1. artsA mythical creature, like a brownie or leprechaun, believed to live in underground tunnels; later associated with dead miners.

    Then he's down one of these adits, talking to the tommyknockers, more'n likely.

    2006, Thomas Pynchon, Against the Day, Vintage, published 2007, page 335

Origin

From Cornwall.

Full word history & related roots →
Cite this entry
APA

tommyknocker. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tommyknocker

MLA

“tommyknocker.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tommyknocker. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “tommyknocker,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/tommyknocker.

Source: tommyknocker on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.