dribble

[drib-uhl]

verb (used without object)

dribbled, dribbling 

1. to fall or flow in drops or small quantities; trickle.

2. to drivel; slaver.

3. Sports.,  to advance a ball or puck by bouncing it or giving it a series of short kicks or pushes.

verb (used with object)

dribbled, dribbling 

1. to let fall in drops.

2. Sports.

   1. Basketball.,  to bounce (the ball) as in advancing or keeping control of it.

   2. (especially in ice hockey and soccer) to move (the ball or puck) along by a rapid succession of short kicks or pushes.

noun

1. a small trickling stream or a drop.

2. a small quantity of anything.

   a dribble of revenue.

3. Sports.,  an act or instance of dribbling a ball or puck.

4. Scot.,  a drizzle; a light rain.

dribble

/ ˈdrɪbəl /

verb

1. (usually intr) to flow or allow to flow in a thin stream or drops; trickle

2. (intr) to allow saliva to trickle from the mouth

3. (in soccer, basketball, hockey, etc) to propel (the ball) by repeatedly tapping it with the hand, foot, or stick

noun

1. a small quantity of liquid falling in drops or flowing in a thin stream

2. a small quantity or supply

3. an act or instance of dribbling

Other Word Forms

• dribbler noun
• dribbly adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of dribble¹

1555–65; frequentative of obsolete drib (v.), probably variant of drip

Word History and Origins

Origin of dribble¹

C16: frequentative of drib, variant of _drip

Example Sentences

Davidson’s best sequence of the night came in the third quarter, when she came off a screen, dribbled down to the baseline, spun between two defenders and hit a soft jumper from the wing.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

This season he is averaging just 6.2 touches in the opposition box, compared to last season's 9.6, and he is averaging just 1.6 dribbles, less than half of last campaign's number.

Read more on BBC

He’s a ridiculously proportioned savant who dribbles like a point guard, blocks shots like a center and puts up stat lines matched only by Hall-of-Famers.

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Can the cease-fire survive this way, while Hamas dribbles out Israeli corpses?

Read more on The Wall Street Journal

Pages hit another sinker that dribbled in front of the mound.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• drizzle 
• ooze 
• squirt