dabble
to play and splash in or as if in water, especially with the hands.
to work at anything in an irregular or superficial manner: to dabble in literature.
(of a duck) to feed on shallow-water vegetation with rapid, splashing movements of the bill.
to wet slightly in or with a liquid; splash; spatter.
Chiefly South Midland U.S. to wash or rinse off lightly.
Origin of dabble
1Other words for dabble
Other words from dabble
- dabbler, noun
- dab·bling·ly, adverb
- un·dab·bled, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024
How to use dabble in a sentence
Dabbling in night school photography classes in Miami in 1953, a 23- or 24-year-old Yeager quickly made a splash.
In the early 1980s, on the heels of that success, other employers began dabbling in the process.
Back to all the dabbling as a youngster—why did you choose acting over sports and music?
Tom Hiddleston On His Rocker-Vampire in ‘Only Lovers Left Alive,’ ‘Thor 2,’ and ‘Avengers 2’ | Marlow Stern | September 7, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTThe Hangover was a mini-comeback of sorts for you after dabbling in some indie films in the mid-2000s.
Heather Graham on ‘The Hangover Part III,’ Roles for Women, and More | Marlow Stern | May 24, 2013 | THE DAILY BEASTHow does she feel about a fashion-dabbling artist like Cindy Sherman, for instance?
Vogue Creative Director Grace Coddington’s Memoir Offers Few Revelations | Robin Givhan | November 20, 2012 | THE DAILY BEAST
Another suggestion was that they lost their reason already at Yózgad, as a result of dabbling overmuch in spiritualism.
Eastern Nights - and Flights | Alan BottOne drinks in so much inspiration while one is dabbling ones toes in a willow creek.
The Story of Opal | Opal WhiteleyA good deal of Classic went up, the work of academic amateurs, dabbling in Vitruvius and Palladio.
He compared the creatures dabbling, over the board to summer flies on butcher's meat, periodically scared by a cloth.
The Amazing Marriage, Complete | George MeredithThomas Ellis, again, prior of Leighs in Essex, took more loss than gain from dabbling in the art.
Medival Byways | Louis F. Salzmann
British Dictionary definitions for dabble
/ (ˈdæbəl) /
to dip, move, or splash (the fingers, feet, etc) in a liquid
(intr; usually foll by in, with, or at) to deal (with) or work (at) frivolously or superficially; play (at)
(tr) to daub, mottle, splash, or smear: his face was dabbled with paint
Origin of dabble
1Derived forms of dabble
- dabbler, noun
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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