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dibble

[dib-uh l]

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SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR dibble ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

Also dib·ber

[dib-er] /ˈdɪb ər/. a small, handheld, pointed implement for making holes in soil for planting seedlings, bulbs, etc.

verb (used with object), dib·bled, dib·bling.

to make a hole (in the ground) with or as if with a dibble.

to set (plants) in holes made with a dibble.

verb (used without object), dib·bled, dib·bling.

to work with a dibble.

Origin of dibble

1325–75; late Middle English, perhaps akin to dib

Related formsdib·bler, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for dibble

auger, punch, implement, bit, gimlet, trephine, trepan, borer, riveter, awl, wimble, corkscrew, jackhammer, countersink

Examples from the Web for dibble

Contemporary Examples of dibble

Dibble was subsequently named deputy chief of mission at the U.S. Embassy in London.
Congress: Hillary’s Benghazi Investigation Let Top Officials Escape Blame
Josh Rogin
September 15, 2013
Jones and Dibble were responsible for security in Libya, Maxwell and three State Department officials said.
Exclusive: Hillary’s Benghazi ‘Scapegoat’ Speaks Out
Josh Rogin
May 20, 2013

Historical Examples of dibble

Doctor taps Mr. Dibble on the eyebrow with his forefinger, and away they go.
The Uncommercial Traveller
Charles Dickens
This young lady, a Miss Dibble, is downstairs, where her typewriter will not bother.
The Blind Spot
Austin Hall
Yes, put that down, too, Miss Dibble; I want people to know everything!
The Blind Spot
Austin Hall
But, of course, it was Mrs. Dibble who could tell the most, and who was more in demand than ever.
Little Lord Fauntleroy
Frances Hodgson Burnett
The sky was overcast, and Dibble said that a storm was brewing.
The Last Cruise of the Spitfire
Edward Stratemeyer

British Dictionary definitions for dibble

dibble

¹

noun

Also called (esp Brit): dibber (ˈdɪbə) a small hand tool used to make holes in the ground for planting or transplanting bulbs, seeds, or roots

verb

to make a hole in (the ground) with a dibble

to plant (bulbs, seeds, etc) with a dibble

Derived Formsdibbler, noun

Word Origin for dibble

C15: of obscure origin

dibble

²

verb (intr)

a variant of dib

a less common word for dabble

dibble

³

noun

British slang a policeman

Word Origin for dibble

C20: allusion to the police officer of that name in the children's animated cartoon Top Cat

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

Word Origin and History for dibble

n.

"tool to make a hole in the soil (as to plant seeds)," mid-15c., probably from Middle English dibben (perhaps akin to dip) + instrumental suffix -le. The verb is from 1580s. Related: Dibbled; dibbling.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper