trickle
Americanverb (used without object)
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to flow or fall by drops, or in a small, gentle stream.
Tears trickled down her cheeks.
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to come, go, or pass bit by bit, slowly, or irregularly.
The guests trickled out of the room.
verb (used with object)
verb
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to run or cause to run in thin or slow streams
she trickled the sand through her fingers
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(intr) to move, go, or pass gradually
the crowd trickled away
noun
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a thin, irregular, or slow flow of something
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the act of trickling
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Conjugated Forms
Present
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have trickledperfect
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has trickledperfect 3rd person singular
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have been tricklingperfect progressive
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has been tricklingperfect progressive 3rd person singular
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tricklingparticiple
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tricklessingular 3rd person
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are tricklingprogressive
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am tricklingprogressive 1st person singular
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is tricklingprogressive 3rd person singular
Past
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had trickledperfect
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was tricklingprogressive singular
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trickledparticiple
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were tricklingprogressive plural
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had been tricklingperfect progressive
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trickledsimple
Future
Etymology
Origin of trickle
1325–75; Middle English triklen, trekelen (v.), apparently sandhi variant of strikle, perhaps equivalent to strike (in obsolete sense “flow”) + -le
Explanation
To trickle is to weakly flow out of something, like a faucet. A trickle is like a drip. There are a lot of ways water can flow, but one type of slow dripping is called trickling. If your shower is only releasing a trickle of water, you're not going to get much of a shower. If it's raining — but only a trickle — you might not need an umbrella. A slightly leaky roof is trickling. A trickle is the opposite of a downpour or flood. Trickling can also be called dribbling.
Vocabulary lists containing trickle
Vocabulary: A Rapper's Delight!
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Chuck Berry (1926-2017) Tribute List
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Lyrical Vocabulary, Volume II
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
Investors are wondering if Super Micro’s orders can trickle down into earnings growth.
From MarketWatch • Jun. 9, 2026
Now, hiring has slowed to a trickle, and companies from Amazon.com to Meta and United Parcel Service have laid off thousands of managers and other staff.
From The Wall Street Journal • Jun. 1, 2026
Most of the eating establishments that line this stretch of road are hidden behind metal shutters, and a trickle of people and cars pass through.
From BBC • May 22, 2026
Even as the relentless rise in Los Angeles housing costs seems to have paused, condominium sales slowed to a trickle this year.
From Los Angeles Times • May 13, 2026
He barked and cut a path that led to a sandstone archway embedded into a stone wall facing a trickle of stream.
From "The Way to Rio Luna" by Zoraida Cordova
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
