drabble en · VERB · etymology 1
Pronunciation
- (Southern-England) audio
- /ˈdɹæbəl/
Etymology
Inherited from Middle English drabelan.
Meanings
-
(transitive) To wet or dirty, especially by dragging through mud.
That which eſpecialleſt nouriſht the moſt prime pleaſure in me, was after a ſtorme when they were driuen inſwarmes, and lay close peſtred together as thicke as they could packe; the next day following, if it were faire, they would cloud the whole skie with canuas, by ſpreading their drabled ſailes in the full clue abroad a drying, and make a brauer ſhew with them, then ſo many banners and ſtreamers diſplayed againſt the Sunne on a mountaine top.
1599, [Thomas] Nashe, Nashes Lenten Stuffe, […], London: […] [Thomas Judson and Valentine Simmes] for N[icholas] L[ing] and C[uthbert] B[urby] […], →OCLC, pages 5–6:
-
(intransitive) To fish with a long line and rod.
to drabble for barbels
Forms
| Spelling | Features | Labels | Source |
|---|---|---|---|
| drabbled | Tense=Past, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| drabbled | Tense=Past | lexicographic | |
| drabbling | Tense=Pres, VerbForm=Part | lexicographic | |
| drabbles | Number=Sing, Person=3, Tense=Pres | lexicographic |