dabble

verb

dab·ble | \ ˈda-bəl

dabbled; dabbling\ ˈda-b(ə-)liŋ

Definition of dabble

transitive verb

: to wet by splashing or by little dips or strokes : spatter

intransitive verb

1a : to paddle, splash, or play in or as if in water

b : to reach with the bill to the bottom of shallow water in order to obtain food

2 : to work or involve oneself superficially or intermittently especially in a secondary activity or interest dabbles in art

Other Words from dabble Example Sentences Learn More about dabble

Keep scrolling for more

Examples of dabble in a Sentence

The ducks dabbled in the stream. She sat by the pool, dabbling her feet in the cool water.

Recent Examples on the Web

The grocery business has also dabbled in some mergers and acquisitions of its own that would seem to be a pretty direct defense against the Amazon-Whole Foods threat. — Sarah Halzack, latimes.com, "Amazon-Whole Foods: A year later, what has changed?," 11 June 2018 Rummer and his wife Phyllis, now in their nineties, are fixtures of Oregon architectural history: In the 1950s, Robert Rummer was an insurance adjuster who dabbled in design. — Samantha Weiss Hills, Curbed, "A Portland couple trades in a farmhouse for their midcentury dream home," 27 Aug. 2018 One of his two grown daughters dabbles in the sport and his Australian son-in-law, Nick Cooper, won gold at the 2018 Australian pickleball nationals. — Jen Murphy, WSJ, "A Tennis Purist Who Became a Pickleball Pro," 19 Jan. 2019 But there is a limited number of private companies around the world that can accept SoftBank’s big checks, and so control investments are a natural area for the Vision Fund to dabble in. — Theodore Schleifer, Recode, "SoftBank has a lot to worry about if it strikes this deal with WeWork," 10 Oct. 2018 Kuhl also knew the company had to dabble in experiential retail. — Chavie Lieber, Vox, "Let people hang out in your store and watch TV.," 3 Oct. 2018 If SpaceX decides to dabble in private space tourism to drum up funds for the BFR, the company has the means to do it. — Loren Grush, The Verge, "The easiest way for Elon Musk to raise money for SpaceX might be tourism," 18 Sep. 2018 Jacobs, who also runs an insurance and real estate company, is not the only former World Wrestling Entertainment star to dabble in politics. — Benjamin Brown, Fox News, "Former WWE star Glenn 'Kane' Jacobs wins mayoral race in Tennessee," 3 Aug. 2018 There is a collective want on the player side to take advantage of a bigger free agent market next summer, and a want from the teams to dabble in that market. — Rob Mahoney, SI.com, "NBA Free Agency 2018: Under-the-Radar Grades," 4 July 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'dabble.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.