noodling

American  

[nood-ling] / ˈnud lɪŋ /

verb

1. present participle of noodle.

   I learned the hard way why noodling for catfish is considered dangerous.

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noun

1. the act of catching fish, especially catfish, with only one’s bare hands.

   Some states have banned noodling, citing the dangers of the activity as well as concern over sustainability of the fish populations.

noodling British  

/ ˈnuːdlɪŋ /

noun

1. slang aimless musical improvisation

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Etymology

Origin of noodling

First recorded in 1935–40; noodl(e) ⁴ ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. )

Example Sentences

As the technology becomes so cheap that anyone can use it, we may become deluged by a wave of low-quality noodling.

From Los Angeles Times

They hang out — George with a ukulele in his hands, noodling away — and talk old times.

From Los Angeles Times

Tech Noodling: Large corporations have teams mapping out AI strategies and deploying the new technologies.

From The Wall Street Journal

As he speaks, Wonder is noodling on the harpejji, the electric string instrument you’ve probably seen him play on TV on the Grammy Awards or “Dancing With the Stars.”

From Los Angeles Times

“Tomorrow,” after intermission, contained 24 blissful minutes of bass, percussion, flute, guitar and vocal noodling over a recorded soundscape of environmental noise.

From Los Angeles Times