Nubble

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. A small rounded bump or knob on a surface
2. A tiny protruding lump or swelling on or in something
3. A small raised projection or nodule on a surface or body

Etymology: "Nubble" is a small lump or knob, the kind you feel in a piece of cloth or a rough surface, and its roots lie in a blunt physical gesture. The word is generally linked to Low German "nubben," meaning to knock or cuff, which suggests the idea of something small that has been rapped or bumped into shape. The sense of a small protuberance follows naturally from that origin. A nubble is less a deliberate object than a little rounded bump left behind, the sort of thing a thumb finds on a cheap sweater or a worn stone. Its diminutive ending gives it that modest, handleable scale.

Synonyms: knob, lump, protuberance