dribble

1 of 2

verb

drib·​ble ˈdri-bəl How to pronounce dribble (audio)
dribbled; dribbling ˈdri-b(ə-)liŋ How to pronounce dribble (audio)

transitive verb

1
: to issue sporadically and in small bits
2
: to let or cause to fall in drops little by little
3
a
: to propel by successive slight taps or bounces with hand, foot, or stick
dribble a basketball
dribble a puck
b
: to hit (a ball) without much force so that it bounces slowly along the ground

intransitive verb

1
: to fall or flow in drops or in a thin intermittent stream : trickle
2
: to let saliva trickle from the corner of the mouth : drool
3
: to come or issue in piecemeal or desultory fashion
4
a
: to dribble a ball or puck
b
: to proceed by dribbling
c
of a ball : to move with short bounces
dribbler noun

dribble

2 of 2

noun

1
: a tiny or insignificant bit or quantity
2
: a small trickling stream or flow
3
: an act, instance, or manner of dribbling a ball or puck
dribbly adjective

Examples of dribble in a Sentence

Verb Juice dribbled down his chin. She accidentally dribbled wine onto the rug. Dribble olive oil over the warm bread before serving. She dribbled across the basketball court. He skillfully dribbled the soccer ball towards the goal. Noun He wiped a dribble of juice from the corner of the baby's mouth. She gave the ball a dribble before passing it.
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
Battle had the ball in his hands in the final seconds, but dribbled out the clock rather than trying to score more than 30 points for the fourth consecutive game after having 42 against Missouri, 36 against Vanderbilt and 34 at Kentucky. Bob Holt, arkansasonline.com, 7 Mar. 2024 The Wizards had one final chance to extend the game, but Kuzma missed a potential tying three-pointer with 7.9 seconds left and the Lakers tapped the rebound out and dribbled out the clock. Dan Woike, Los Angeles Times, 1 Mar. 2024 Messi went viral after dribbling over an injured defender laying on the pitch during the first half of Inter Miami’s 2-0 win over Real Salt Lake on Wednesday night. Safid Deen, USA TODAY, 22 Feb. 2024 He’s shown dribbling down the court and passes the ball to a teammate to make a lay-up. Julia Landwehr, Health, 22 Feb. 2024 On the second try, Koehler took the ball out and passed to LeBron Gough, who dribbled to left corner and missed a 3-pointer contested by Lewis at the buzzer. The Indianapolis Star, 23 Jan. 2024 The guard dribbled at the top of the key, then passed to his brother, 6-foot-7 senior power forward Nick Corbett, who took two dribbles before giving it back to his sibling. Darren Sabedra, The Mercury News, 1 Mar. 2024 Stefanovic repeatedly dribbled into the paint and turned the ball over. Ben Bolch, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2024 But Blackshear, dribbling the ball at the top, didn’t wait to see if Lucas was open. Mark Zeigler, San Diego Union-Tribune, 11 Feb. 2024
Noun
Being able to go immediately uphill to a deep dribble handoff or pitch-and-hit, swinging quick screen behind the screen, behind the swing. Khobi Price, Orange County Register, 30 Jan. 2024 Even our center at times is gonna bring it and get into DHO (dribble hand-off) type of action. Dana Scott, The Arizona Republic, 22 Jan. 2024 But his ability to just off the dribble rise up and get complete clearance is special. Dustin Dopirak, The Indianapolis Star, 22 Jan. 2024 Instead, Aaron Gordon got the ball to Jokic, who took three dribbles across halfcourt, stopped and launched a 40-footer over Kevon Looney from the right sideline that banked in as time expired. Eric He, USA TODAY, 5 Jan. 2024 The record-breaker was a three off the dribble on the left wing near the Mediacom Court logo with 7:45 left in the first quarter. Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 16 Feb. 2024 That’s because Maryland made a more concerted effort to attack the basket with Reese and Scott setting up in the post and Young and Harris-Smith attacking off the dribble. Edward Lee, Baltimore Sun, 15 Feb. 2024 Antetokounmpo casually crossed over from right to left and sized up his defender with a hesitation dribble that took him to the left elbow. Brian Sampson, Forbes, 10 Feb. 2024 Then the second: a deep breath, two dribbles and a clean make for the lead. Aaron Beard, USA TODAY, 27 Jan. 2024

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'dribble.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

frequentative of drib to dribble

First Known Use

Verb

circa 1589, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 1

Noun

circa 1680, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of dribble was circa 1589

Dictionary Entries Near dribble

Cite this Entry

“Dribble.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/dribble. Accessed 18 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

dribble

1 of 2 verb
drib·​ble ˈdrib-əl How to pronounce dribble (audio)
dribbled; dribbling -(ə-)liŋ How to pronounce dribble (audio)
1
: to fall or flow or let fall in small drops : trickle
2
3
: to move forward by tapping, bouncing, or kicking
dribble a basketball
dribble a puck
dribbler noun

dribble

2 of 2 noun
1
: a small trickling flow
2
: an act or instance of dribbling a ball or puck

More from Merriam-Webster on dribble

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