dabble
Definition, pronunciation, etymology, and usage for the English word. Free spelling reference powered by Wiktionary.
Letters
6 characters
Language
English
word origin
Source
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Detailed reference entry for the English word "dabble", 6-letters, with pronunciation in International Phonetic Alphabet notation, etymology traced through Germanic and Romance roots where applicable, common misspelling variants catalogued from Hunspell error dictionaries, and usage frequency ranked against the top 100,000 English words in the Wordfreq corpus. PlainSpell covers English, Spanish, Portuguese, French, and German spelling with confusable-pair detection that highlights visually and phonetically similar words. This entry for "dabble" includes synonyms, antonyms, homophones, and cross-language translation pointers sourced from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org extract. Whether you are verifying the correct spelling of "dabble" for academic writing, checking homophone confusion, or exploring etymological origins, this page provides a citation-backed, free reference that requires no sign-up.
dabble is aEnglishverb. It means: To make slightly wet or soiled by spattering or sprinkling a liquid (such as water, mud, or paint) on it; to bedabble. Pronounced /ˈdæb.əl/. Often confused with dale and double.
| Property | Value |
|---|---|
| Headword | dabble |
| Language | English |
| Part of speech | Verb |
| IPA | /ˈdæb.əl/ |
| Letters | 6 |
| Frequency rank | #42,590 |
| Misspellings tracked | 7 |
| Confusable pairs | 7 |
| Source | Wiktionary (kaikki.org) |
Frequency rank visualization
Spelling & Dictionary Insight
The English entry for dabble is 6 letters long, classified as averb, and transcribed in the International Phonetic Alphabet as /ˈdæb.əl/. Corpus data places it at rank #42,590 in overall English word frequency, marking it as uncommon enough that many writers pause before typing it.Wiktionary records 5 distinct senses for this headword, so context determines which meaning a reader should apply.
Our Hunspell-derived misspelling index lists 7 documented wrong-spelling variants for dabble, with forms such as "adbble", "dabbel", and "dabblle". Each variant represents a distinct typo pattern that appears often enough in corpora to be worth flagging, typically a doubled-consonant error, a silent-letter drop, or a vowel substitution.It also participates in 7 confusable-pair relationships, "dale", "double", "Debbie", and more, where similar look or sound leads writers to substitute one word for another in context.
Etymologically, the entry records: From earlier dable, equivalent to dab + -le (frequentative suffix), possibly from Middle Dutch dabbelen (“to pinch; knead; to fumble; to dabble”); cognate with Icelandic dafla (“to dabble”). Root origin matters for spelling because borrowed morphemes (Greek, Latin, Old French, Old English) carry their source-language orthographic conventions into modern English, which is why historical etymology is often the cleanest predictor of whether a cluster like "-ough", "-eau", or "-tion" will appear. For readers arriving here from a spelling check, the authoritative guidance is: the correct English form is dabble, spelled D-A-B-B-L-E, and any other sequence of those letters, regardless of how natural it feels, is a misspelling in standard orthography.
Definition
- 1To make slightly wet or soiled by spattering or sprinkling a liquid (such as water, mud, or paint) on it; to bedabble.
- 2To cause splashing by moving a body part like a bill or limb in soft mud, water, etc., often playfully; to play in shallow water; to paddle.
- 3To feed without diving, by submerging the head and neck underwater to seek food, often also tipping up the tail straight upwards above the water.
- 4To participate or have an interest in an activity in a casual or superficial way.
- 5To interfere or meddle in; to tamper with.
Etymology
From earlier dable, equivalent to dab + -le (frequentative suffix), possibly from Middle Dutch dabbelen (“to pinch; knead; to fumble; to dabble”); cognate with Icelandic dafla (“to dabble”).
Synonyms
This word in other languages
Common misspellings
Also misspelled as: adbble,dabbel,dabblle,dablbe,dable,dbable,ddabble
Misspelling Pattern Breakdown
Relative frequency of common misspelling types for dabble
Misspelling Variants of "dabble"
Frequency rank: #42,590 in English
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Nearby English words
Other entries that begin with the letter D in our English index: