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waddle

[ wod-l ]
/ ˈwɒd l /
|
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verb (used without object), wad·dled, wad·dling.

to walk with short steps, swaying or rocking from side to side, as a duck.
to move in any similar, slow, rocking manner; wobble: The ship waddled into port.

noun

an act or instance of waddling, especially a waddling gait.

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RELATED WORDS

totter, wobble, toddle, wiggle, sway, shuffle, rock

Nearby words

  1. wadai,
  2. waddenzee,
  3. waddesdon manor,
  4. wadding,
  5. waddington,
  6. waddy,
  7. wade,
  8. wade in,
  9. wade, benjamin franklin,
  10. wade-giles system

Origin of waddle

1350–1400; Middle English; see wade, -le; compare German watteln
Related formswad·dler, nounwad·dling·ly, adverbwad·dly, adjectiveun·wad·dling, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for waddle

British Dictionary definitions for waddle

waddle

/ (ˈwɒdəl) /

verb (intr)

to walk with short steps, rocking slightly from side to side

noun

a swaying gait or motion
Derived Formswaddler, nounwaddling, adjectivewaddly, adjective

Word Origin for waddle

C16: probably frequentative of wade
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 waddle

waddle

v.

"to walk with short steps," 1590s, frequentative of wade. Related: Waddled; waddling. The noun is recorded from 1690s.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper