Jump To:

• dale
  dale

  noun

  a valley, especially a broad valley.
• Dale
  Dale

  noun

  Sir Henry Hallett 1875–1968, English physiologist: Nobel Prize in Medicine 1936.

dale

¹ American  

[deyl] / deɪl /

noun

• dales
  plural

1. a valley, especially a broad valley.

---

Dale ² American  

[deyl] / deɪl /

noun

1. Sir Henry Hallett 1875–1968, English physiologist: Nobel Prize in Medicine 1936.

2. Sir Thomas, died 1619, British colonial administrator in America: governor of Virginia 1614–16.

3. a male or female given name.

---

Dale ¹ British  

/ deɪl /

noun

1. Sir Henry Hallet. 1875–1968, English physiologist: shared a Nobel prize for physiology or medicine in 1936 with Otto Loewi for their work on the chemical transmission of nerve impulses

---

dale ² British  

/ deɪl /

noun

1. an open valley, usually in an area of low hills

---

Dale Scientific  

/ dāl /

1. British physiologist who discovered acetylcholine and, with Otto Loewi, investigated the chemical transmission of nerve impulses. For this work they shared the 1936 Nobel Prize for physiology or medicine.

---

Other Word Forms

Noun Inflected Forms

• dales
  plural

Etymology

Origin of dale

before 900; Middle English dal, Old English dæl; cognate with German Tal, Old Norse dalr, Gothic dals

Explanation

A dale is a valley, a wide, open area that stretches between hills. Some dales have rivers or streams flowing through them, while others are covered in grasses or other plants. When a geologist describes something as a dale or a valley, it is typically a low area that's longer than it is wide, and bordered on at least two sides by hills or mountains. Dales with rivers are often called "vales," while a very small dale is sometimes called a "hollow," pronounced "holler" in rural Appalachia. Dale comes from the Old English word for "valley," dæl.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

dale Dale dales

Seconds after retreating, Garcia steps out, holding the stick upright along with plastic bags filled with recyclables, asking Silva in Spanish: “Porque me quieres pegar? Dale, dale, pega me?”

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 22, 2026

Having gone uphill, they are heading down dale at velocity.

From The Guardian ● Jul. 11, 2021

There’s a scene in “A Walk in the Woods,” a low-impact amble through hill, dale and cinematic nostalgia, when our two crusty trekkers face down a pair of bears.

From New York Times ● Sep. 1, 2015

On the southern flank of the dale, David Dinsdale calls instructions to his border collie Tom to round up his flock of mule gimmers - young ewes.

From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2015

The dale ran like a stony trough between the ridged hills, and a trickling stream flowed among the boulders at the bottom.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien

One of the most prominent critics is Richard Dale, emeritus professor of international banking at the University of Southampton.

From BBC ● Jun. 18, 2026

No one clued in Dale about this, or anybody else, for that matter.

From Salon ● Jun. 18, 2026

The all-rounder bowled in the middle before play, then batted in the nets with Durham batting coach Dale Benkenstein.

From BBC ● Jun. 13, 2026

According to the affidavit, Dale asked to be wrapped “like a mummy” with plastic wrap, and to glue a pair of women’s boots to his feet.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 10, 2026

It was easier to let go of this when he was with Ms. Dale and Daniel.

From "A Bird Will Soar" by Alison Green Myers

Read on for tips on where to find flowers, which wineries are on the up and how to stay satiated and well rested as you roam the region’s hills and dales.

From Seattle Times ● May 18, 2024

The glory that now haloes the vineyard valleys of Sonoma and Santa Ynez, Alexander and Edna, the Russian River, and other dales and vales, once belonged to Los Angeles.

From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 1, 2022

After hiking o’er hills and o’er dales, Said the campers: “Good night; happy trails!”

From Washington Post ● Sep. 5, 2019

Thorstein went south by the dales all the way till he came to his estates.

From Textbooks ● Jan. 1, 2019

They stand here and there in the wood or under its eaves, silent, watching endlessly over the trees; but deep in the darkest dales there are hundreds and hundreds of them, I believe.

From "The Two Towers" by J. R. R. Tolkien