toddle

[tod-l]

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verb (used without object), tod·dled, tod·dling.

to move with short, unsteady steps, as a young child.

noun

the act of toddling.

an unsteady gait.

Origin of toddle

First recorded in 1490–1500; to(tter) + (wa)ddle

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

Related Words for toddle

totter, wobble, waddle, stalk, patter

Examples from the Web for toddle

Historical Examples of toddle

I call him Toddle because that's about all he can do in the way of a walk.
Bunny Brown and His Sister Sue in the Sunny South
Laura Lee Hope
Let's toddle along and see what Fu Manchu has to say for himself.
Greener Than You Think
Ward Moore
You say well, Haimet, it was before your day; you were only beginning to toddle about when he died.
One Snowy Night
Emily Sarah Holt
She had from the time she could toddle around been constantly with her father.
Fighting the Traffic in Young Girls
Various
He was the youngest of us, and could just toddle when Bill went away.
The Two Whalers
W.H.G. Kingston

British Dictionary definitions for toddle

toddle

verb (intr)

to walk with short unsteady steps, as a child does when learning to walk

(foll by off) jocular to depart

(foll by round, over, etc) jocular to stroll; amble

noun

the act or an instance of toddling

Word Origin for toddle

C16 (Scottish and northern English): of obscure origin

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 toddle

"to run or walk with short, unsteady steps," c.1600, Scottish and northern British, of uncertain origin, possibly related to totter (1530s); an earlier sense of "to toy, play" is found c.1500. Related: Toddled; toddling.