Source : Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary (1913)

Hobgoblin \Hob"gob`lin\, n. [See 2d Hob, and {Goblin}.]
   A frightful goblin; an imp; a bugaboo; also, a name formerly
   given to the household spirit, Robin Goodfellow. --Macaulay.

Source : WordNet®

hobgoblin
     n 1: (folklore) a small grotesque supernatural creature that
          makes trouble for human beings [syn: {goblin}, {hob}]
     2: an object of dread or apprehension; "Germany was always a
        bugbear for France"; "A foolish consistency is the
        hobgoblin of little minds"--Ralph Waldo Emerson [syn: {bugbear}]