dandled; dandling
ˈdan-(d)liŋ 
-dᵊl-iŋ
1
: to move up and down in one's arms or on one's knee in affectionate play
dandle a baby
Examples of dandle in a Sentence
the college president is a past master at dandling wealthy alumni
Recent Examples on the Web
The tale is pilfered from the Aeneid, but Virgil would blench to see the curtain rise on Jupiter, dandling Ganymede, a beautiful boy, upon his knee.
—
Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
An hour later, Musk took X to New York and dandled him on his knee while being photographed for Time.
—Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2023
Vet emailed me a photo of Sly contentedly dandling a grandson in his lap.
—David Kamp, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
The day after the election, Taaz Robinson, a fellow third-year, posted a picture on Buckingham’s Facebook page of Donald Trump as an infant being dandled by Vladimir Putin.
—Tara Bahrampour, Washington Post, 12 Oct. 2017
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Anthony Lane, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
An hour later, Musk took X to New York and dandled him on his knee while being photographed for Time.
—Jill Lepore, The New Yorker, 11 Sep. 2023
Vet emailed me a photo of Sly contentedly dandling a grandson in his lap.
—David Kamp, HollywoodReporter, 3 Sep. 2019
The day after the election, Taaz Robinson, a fellow third-year, posted a picture on Buckingham’s Facebook page of Donald Trump as an infant being dandled by Vladimir Putin.
—Tara Bahrampour, Washington Post, 12 Oct. 2017
Cite this Entry
“Dandle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dandle. Accessed 3 Nov. 2025.
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