hassock

/ˈhæsək/

Other forms: hassocks

A soft cushion for sitting, kneeling, or resting your feet on is a hassock. You can also call a hassock a tuffet, like Little Miss Muffet's tuffet in the nursery rhyme.

One place you can find hassocks is in a church in which the congregation kneels during prayers. These hassocks are also known as kneelers. If your footrest has legs on it, it's a footstool, but if it doesn't, feel free to refer to it as a hassock. The oldest meaning of this word is "clump of grass." Experts guess that the "soft cushion" meaning of hassock came from its similarity to a soft clump of grass.

Definitions of hassock

1. noun

   a cushion for kneeling on (as when praying in church)
   type of:

   cushion

   a soft bag filled with air or a mass of padding such as feathers or foam rubber etc.
2. noun

   thick cushion used as a seat
   synonyms: ottoman, pouf, pouffe, puff

   type of:

   seat

   furniture that is designed for sitting on