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dimple

[dim-puh l]
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noun
  1. a small, natural hollow area or crease, permanent or transient, in some soft part of the human body, especially one formed in the cheek in smiling.
  2. any similar slight depression.
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verb (used with object), dim·pled, dim·pling.
  1. to mark with or as if with dimples; produce dimples in: A smile dimpled her face.
  2. Metalworking.
    1. to dent (a metal sheet) so as to permit use of bolts or rivets with countersunk heads.
    2. to mark (a metal object) with a drill point as a guide for further drilling.
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verb (used without object), dim·pled, dim·pling.
  1. to form or show dimples.
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Origin of dimple

1350–1400; Middle English dimpel, Old English *dympel; cognate with German Tümpel pool
Related formsdim·ply, adjectiveun·dim·pled, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Examples from the Web for dimple

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • He had been only vaguely conscious of the dimple in the night.

  • It is whispered that if Maria gives her hand to Mr. Dimple, it will be without her heart.

    The Contrast

    Royall Tyler

  • The reputation of my life does not depend upon the breath of a Mr. Dimple.

    The Contrast

    Royall Tyler

  • I have the honour to be Mr. Dimple's servant, or, if you please, waiter.

    The Contrast

    Royall Tyler

  • And will you pretend to say now, Mr. Dimple, that you propose to break with Maria?

    The Contrast

    Royall Tyler

British Dictionary definitions for dimple

dimple

noun
  1. a small natural dent or crease in the flesh, esp on the cheeks or chin
  2. any slight depression in a surface
  3. a bubble or dent in glass
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verb
  1. to make or become dimpled
  2. (intr) to produce dimples by smiling
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Derived Formsdimply, adjective

Word Origin

C13 dympull; compare Old English dyppan to dip, German Tümpel pool
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 dimple

n.

c.1400, perhaps existing in Old English as a word meaning "pothole," perhaps ultimately from Proto-Germanic *dumpilaz, which has yielded words in other languages meaning "small pit, little pool" (e.g. German Tümpel "pool," Middle Low German dümpelen, Dutch dompelen "to plunge"). Related: Dimples.

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v.

1570s (implied in dimpled), from dimple (n.).

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
dimple in Medicine

dimple

(dĭm′pəl)
n.
  1. A small natural indentation in the chin, cheek, or sacral region, probably due to some developmental fault in the subcutaneous connective tissue or in underlying bone.
  2. A depression of similar appearance resulting from trauma or the contraction of scar tissue.
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Related formsdim′ple v.
The American Heritage® Stedman's Medical Dictionary Copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Company.