clodhoppers

Noun

clodhopper (plural clodhoppers)

1. (footwear) A strong shoe for heavy-duty use; a boot.
   • ...who had got on his "hill shoes," as he calls a pair of clodhoppers as thick as a ploughman's, and stuck round with nails.1830, Margaret Hundy, “First Epistle from Mrs. Margaret Hundy”, in The Lady's Magazine
2. (US, footwear) Any shoe construed (within a particular context) as ungainly.
   • We had to walk slow because of his wooden clod-hoppers, and that was the way I wanted it now1959, Claude F. Koch, A Matter of Family
3. (slang, footwear) United States Navy ankle length work shoes, distinct from dress shoes or combat boots.
   • Smiling Jim Mead of New York tries on his GI clodhopper boots. He decided to return them "because we couldn't make any altitude with those aboard."1943 August 16, “Senators go global: Five will fly to all fronts”, in LIFE Magazine
4. (broadly, footwear) To refer to generally big feet or the foot of a clumsy person.
5. (UK) A clumsy or foolish person.
   • All guess-work exploits shrivel up a good yard, or sometimes two, when brought to the measure, and the champion of the county dwindles into a clumsy clod-hopper.1826 August, P.H. Clias, “Gymnastics”, in Blackwood's Magazine, volume XX, number CXV

   Synonyms:

   oaf

6. (derogatory, historical) A peasant or yokel (countryperson).
   • Near-synonyms: bumpkin, hick

   Synonyms:

   bumpkin, hick

See all 8 meanings of clodhopper