doodle

¹

[dood-l]

verb (used with or without object)

doodled, doodling 

1. to draw or scribble idly.

   He doodled during the whole lecture.

2. to waste (time) in aimless or foolish activity.

3. Dialect.,  to deceive; cheat.

noun

1. a design, figure, or the like, made by idle scribbling.

2. Archaic.,  a foolish or silly person.

doodle

²

[dood-l]

noun

Chiefly North Midland U.S.

1. a small pile of hay; haystack.

doodle

/ ˈduːdəl /

verb

1. to scribble or draw aimlessly

2. to play or improvise idly

3. to dawdle or waste time

noun

1. a shape, picture, etc, drawn aimlessly

Other Word Forms

• doodler noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of doodle¹

1625–30 in archaic sense “a fool”; 1935–40 in current senses; compare Low German dudeltopf simpleton

Origin of doodle²

Probably extracted from cock-a-doodle-doo ( def. ); a euphemism for cock ³, to avoid association with cock ¹, in sense “penis”

Word History and Origins

Origin of doodle¹

C20: perhaps from C17 doodle a foolish person, but influenced in meaning by _dawdle ; compare Low German dudeltopf simpleton

Example Sentences

When Stringer sketched, he said, “it wasn’t just doodles. It was meticulously drawn. And his lines were perfect.”

From Los Angeles Times

Fox News doesn’t want to talk about the crude doodle of a naked woman, with its creepy message printed across her breasts and torso, and a signature — “Donald” — in her pubic area.

From Los Angeles Times

The dialogue is surrounded by a doodle of the outline of a woman.

From Salon

And sure enough, when Gray’s attorneys sent me the cover page of his file, there it was, in the upper right corner: a small doodle of a swastika.

From Salon

I’ll sit in my kitchen — I’ve got nothing but birds chirping and the sun’s coming in — doodling for hours if I’m allowed.

From Los Angeles Times