trickled; trickling
ˈtri-k(ə-)liŋ 
1
a
: to issue or fall in drops
b
: to flow in a thin gentle stream
2
a
: to move or go one by one or little by little
customers began to trickle in
b
: to dissipate slowly
his enthusiasm trickled away
: a thin, slow, or intermittent stream or movement
Examples of trickle in a Sentence
Verb
Tears trickled down her cheeks.
Water was trickling out of the gutter.
People trickled into the theater.
Donations have been trickling in.
Noun
We heard the trickle of water from the roof.
The flow of water slowed to a trickle.
Sales have slowed to a trickle in recent weeks.
A slow trickle of customers came into the store throughout the day.
Recent Examples on the Web
Ryan Bradley MacLeod Andrews Emma Kehlbeck Quinton Kamara, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024
There was never a big announcement about the potential spin-off, with news of it only trickling out in 2022 when GoT creator George R.R. Martin confirmed some swirling rumors.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2024
The movie's first poster might confirm this, showing Phoenix dipping Gaga in a haunting dance as light seems to trickle in from one of the asylum's windows.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 4 Apr. 2024
Weeks later, word of an impending change to Reddit’s own API fees started to trickle out from Huffman’s office.
—Paresh Dave, WIRED, 14 Mar. 2024
Much of the electricity powering our lights and refrigerators and cellphones comes from rivers, their once free-flowing waters backing up behind dams and trickling through hydropower turbines.
—Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2024
The central bank doesn’t set mortgage rates, but its policy moves trickle out to make borrowing more expensive across the economy.
—Jim Tankersley, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2024
The end to his flawless run was compounded when Hadwin’s 14-foot putt agonizingly trickled an inch wide of the cup, leaving the exasperated world No. 46 to tap in for a double-bogey.
—Jack Bantock, CNN, 15 Mar. 2024
Trucks already packed sit idle on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing but trickle through at a fraction of prewar levels.
—Sammy Westfall, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
Calmatters, The Mercury News, 21 Mar. 2024
Related article Why only a trickle of aid is getting into Gaza
More shipments are expected, but the process is slow and complicated, especially as there are no functioning ports left in Gaza to efficiently receive the aid.
—Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024
Saturday night’s rapid lava flows had slowed to a steady trickle by Sunday morning, but the molten rock nonetheless reached Grindavik’s eastern wall of defense.
—Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Mar. 2024
Will the streaming spigot slow to a trickle, forcing auteurs to find new homes for their pricey passion projects?
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 8 Mar. 2024
Since launching its assault on Gaza following the attack, Israel has barred entry of food, water, medicine and other supplies, except for a trickle of aid entering the south from Egypt at the Rafah crossing and Israel's Kerem Shalom crossing.
—Elizabeth Pritchett, Fox News, 8 Mar. 2024
Since the war began on Oct. 7, Israel has barred entry of food, water, medicine and other supplies, except for a trickle of aid entering the south from Egypt at the Rafah crossing and Israel’s Kerem Shalom crossing.
—Tara Copp, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2024
Since Israel’s invasion in response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, the stream of trucks has dwindled to a trickle, reaching Gaza through only a few checkpoints, subject to strenuous Israeli inspections and beset by logistical logjams and security concerns.
—Manuel Canales, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2024
As the steel mills closed, the city’s population dwindled and by the mid-1980s, the flow of college prospects slowed to a trickle.
—Billy Witz, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2024
Verb
Over the next two years, more tracks from that initial barn session trickled out; the three toured and toured as their audience grew and grew.
—Ryan Bradley MacLeod Andrews Emma Kehlbeck Quinton Kamara, New York Times, 10 Apr. 2024
There was never a big announcement about the potential spin-off, with news of it only trickling out in 2022 when GoT creator George R.R. Martin confirmed some swirling rumors.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 9 Apr. 2024
The movie's first poster might confirm this, showing Phoenix dipping Gaga in a haunting dance as light seems to trickle in from one of the asylum's windows.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 4 Apr. 2024
Weeks later, word of an impending change to Reddit’s own API fees started to trickle out from Huffman’s office.
—Paresh Dave, WIRED, 14 Mar. 2024
Much of the electricity powering our lights and refrigerators and cellphones comes from rivers, their once free-flowing waters backing up behind dams and trickling through hydropower turbines.
—Sammy Roth, Los Angeles Times, 14 Mar. 2024
The central bank doesn’t set mortgage rates, but its policy moves trickle out to make borrowing more expensive across the economy.
—Jim Tankersley, New York Times, 21 Mar. 2024
The end to his flawless run was compounded when Hadwin’s 14-foot putt agonizingly trickled an inch wide of the cup, leaving the exasperated world No. 46 to tap in for a double-bogey.
—Jack Bantock, CNN, 15 Mar. 2024
Trucks already packed sit idle on the Egyptian side of the Rafah border crossing but trickle through at a fraction of prewar levels.
—Sammy Westfall, Washington Post, 15 Mar. 2024
Noun
Applicants have since last year filed a trickle of expungement requests with the help of legal aid attorneys, public defenders and nonprofits such as the Anti-Recidivism Coalition, which provides prison re-entry services and offered the free fingerprinting in Sacramento this month.
—Calmatters, The Mercury News, 21 Mar. 2024
Related article Why only a trickle of aid is getting into Gaza
More shipments are expected, but the process is slow and complicated, especially as there are no functioning ports left in Gaza to efficiently receive the aid.
—Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN, 18 Mar. 2024
Saturday night’s rapid lava flows had slowed to a steady trickle by Sunday morning, but the molten rock nonetheless reached Grindavik’s eastern wall of defense.
—Christian Thorsberg, Smithsonian Magazine, 18 Mar. 2024
Will the streaming spigot slow to a trickle, forcing auteurs to find new homes for their pricey passion projects?
—Ann Hornaday, Washington Post, 8 Mar. 2024
Since launching its assault on Gaza following the attack, Israel has barred entry of food, water, medicine and other supplies, except for a trickle of aid entering the south from Egypt at the Rafah crossing and Israel's Kerem Shalom crossing.
—Elizabeth Pritchett, Fox News, 8 Mar. 2024
Since the war began on Oct. 7, Israel has barred entry of food, water, medicine and other supplies, except for a trickle of aid entering the south from Egypt at the Rafah crossing and Israel’s Kerem Shalom crossing.
—Tara Copp, Fortune, 2 Mar. 2024
Since Israel’s invasion in response to the Oct. 7 Hamas attack, the stream of trucks has dwindled to a trickle, reaching Gaza through only a few checkpoints, subject to strenuous Israeli inspections and beset by logistical logjams and security concerns.
—Manuel Canales, Washington Post, 28 Mar. 2024
As the steel mills closed, the city’s population dwindled and by the mid-1980s, the flow of college prospects slowed to a trickle.
—Billy Witz, New York Times, 22 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'trickle.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Phrases Containing trickle
Dictionary Entries Near trickle
Cite this Entry
“Trickle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trickle. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
trickle
verb
trick·le
ˈtrik-əl
trickled; trickling
-(ə-)liŋ
1
a
: to flow or fall in drops
water trickling from a leaky faucet
b
: to flow in a thin slow stream
syrup trickling from the bottle
2
a
: to move or go one by one or little by little
customers trickled in
b
: to slowly grow less
his excitement trickled away
trickle
noun
More from Merriam-Webster on trickle
Nglish: Translation of trickle for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of trickle for Arabic Speakers
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