kittle

[ kit-l ]

verb (used with object),kit·tled, kit·tling.
  1. to tickle with the fingers; agitate or stir, as with a spoon.

  2. to excite or rouse (a person), especially by flattery or strong words.

adjective,kit·tler, kit·tlest.
  1. ticklish; fidgety.

  2. requiring skill or caution; precarious.

Origin of kittle

1
First recorded in 1475–85; earlier kytylle, ketil (compare Middle English verbal noun kitilling, kitlinge “tickling” late Old English citelung, kitelung ); cognate with Middle High German kützeln; akin to Old Norse kitla, German kitzeln “to tickle”

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

British Dictionary definitions for kittle

kittle

/ (ˈkɪtəl) Scot /


adjective
  1. capricious and unpredictable

verb
  1. to be troublesome or puzzling to (someone)

  2. to tickle

Origin of kittle

1
C16: probably from Old Norse kitla to tickle

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