scribble

¹ American  

[skrib-uhl] / ˈskrɪb əl /

verb (used with object)

scribbled, scribbling

1. to write hastily or carelessly.

   to scribble a letter.

2. to cover with meaningless writing or marks.

   to scribble all over a page.

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verb (used without object)

scribbled, scribbling

1. to write or draw in a hasty or careless way.

2. to make meaningless marks, scrolls, lines, etc., with a pencil, pen, or the like.

noun

• scribbles
  plural

1. a note or other writing that has little or no meaning.

2. a hasty or careless drawing or piece of writing.

3. handwriting, especially when illegible.

scribble ² American  

[skrib-uhl] / ˈskrɪb əl /

verb (used with object)

scribbled, scribbling

1. to tear apart (wool fibers) in the first stages of carding.

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scribble ¹ British  

/ ˈskrɪbəl /

verb

1. to write or draw in a hasty or illegible manner

2. to make meaningless or illegible marks (on)

3. derogatory to write poetry, novels, etc

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noun

1. hasty careless writing or drawing

2. writing, esp literary matter, of poor quality

3. meaningless or illegible marks

scribble ² British  

/ ˈskrɪbəl /

verb

1. (tr) to card (wool, etc)

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• scribbly
  adjective
• scribblingly
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• scribbles
  plural

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Etymology

Origin of scribble¹

First recorded in 1425–75; late Middle English verb scriblen, scribul, from Medieval Latin scrībillāre “to scribble,” derivative of Latin scrībere “to write”; see also shrive

Origin of scribble²

First recorded in 1675–85; from Dutch schribbelen “to scratch”; cognate with schrobbelen “to card wool coarsely,” frequentative of schrobben to scrub ¹

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Explanation

To scribble is to write something quickly and sloppily. You can also call someone's handwriting, if it's hard to read, a scribble. Have you ever made a note of something very quickly, and then later when you tried to read it, you couldn't? That's a scribble. People scribble when they need to write fast. The problem with scribbling—-making a scribble-—is that it’s hard to read. Some people have handwriting that is always hard to read: you can call poor handwriting a scribble. Doctors are famous for their scribbles. The Latin root is scribere, "to write."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

scribble scribbles scribbled scribbling

Then, in April, the court said: Now that we have the full case before us, we’re going to summarily reverse the district court for the reasons set forth in our five-paragraph scribble from December.

From Slate ● Jul. 13, 2026

Ava steps away for a moment, giving Deborah an opportunity to reach for her notebook to scribble a thought . . . then it happens.

From Salon ● May 29, 2026

Based on a 2014 play by David Haig, who co-wrote its screenplay with its director, Anthony Maras, the movie faces an obvious challenge: Watching meteorologists scribble notations on charts isn’t particularly cinematic.

From The Wall Street Journal ● May 28, 2026

Around her, students scribble notes and sketch corrections into their drawings: Watch the creases as the model walks.

From Los Angeles Times ● May 11, 2026

There’s a notepad and pen on the table next to the bed, so I scribble a quick message: I was here.

From "Boy21" by Matthew Quick

He stacks bullet points along the side of the whiteboard, scribbles concepts and facts we throw at him.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 15, 2026

Malak picks up a pen from the headteacher's desk and scribbles over the photo.

From BBC ● May 7, 2025

In another pivotal moment, Violet scribbles a message that seems to be a big deal according to the tense and pounding score.

From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 11, 2025

The duo quietly scribbles away, creating in the presence of one another, as pages of manuscript pile up.

From Salon ● Dec. 24, 2024

She pauses for a long time, staring down at the paper we’ve been passing back and forth, before she scribbles out something and gives the note back to me.

From "King and the Dragonflies" by Kacen Callender

Frustrated with himself, and with Krantz, McCarthy scribbled on a draft page, “mild horror, creeping bibliophobia, locomotor ataxia, / general lassitude and despondency.”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 1, 2026

I had scribbled a few questions in advance but felt no compulsion to stick to any script, preferring that our own character dynamics might determine the plot of our interview.

From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 9, 2026

I would send the work I thought was my best, and I knew he read them, because he’d often send them back with scribbled notes and comments.

From Salon ● Sep. 8, 2026

Parton later quietly organized for Bandit to be surpised with a custom acoustic guitar, bedazzled with rhinestones and the words "To Brigitte, Love Dolly" scribbled across it.

From Barron's ● Aug. 26, 2026

He scribbled a note into his legal pad.

From "I Can Make This Promise" by Christine Day

Having providers take the time to explain her disease, rather than just scribbling out prescriptions, has made a world of difference for Caldwell, she said.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 14, 2026

Instead, performance slumped and he retired in February 2000, scribbling a message on his office whiteboard: “Tulip bulbs for sale”—a reminder of 17th-century speculation in the Dutch flower market.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 1, 2026

They moved on to a client tender and she was scribbling notes.

From Slate ● Apr. 12, 2026

And earlier this month United defender Noussair Mazraoui was recorded comically scribbling half-hearted signatures on a set of shirts given to him by a hunter who approached him at his car window after training.

From BBC ● Mar. 23, 2026

He retired for two years of intensive reflection and scribbling, and at length produced his masterwork: the Philosophiae Naturalis Principia Mathematica or Mathematical Principles of Natural Philosophy, better known as the Principia.

From "A Short History of Nearly Everything" by Bill Bryson

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Related Words

• jot
• scratch
• scrawl

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