dabble
dabble — verb
- dabblepresent simple I / you / we / they
- dabbleshe / she / it
- dabbledpast simple
- dabbling-ing form
1. to try an activity or study a subject for a short time, without giving it seriou
to try an activity or study a subject for a short time, without giving it serious effort or becoming deeply involved.
Padma dabbled in photography during college but never took it seriously.
dabble in [activity]
Baraka has dabbled with several programming languages over the years without mastering any.
The senator dabbled briefly in the restaurant business before returning to politics.
Eli dabbled in painting as a teen, though he never showed his work to anyone.
Noor dabbled in writing short stories for about a year before losing interest.
- tinker
implies working with small, practical tasks rather than creative or intellectual pursuits
- toy with
similar level of superficiality but suggests even less seriousness; often used with ideas
- flirt with
used mainly with ideas or possibilities, suggesting casual interest without action
- specialize
to focus deeply on one subject rather than sampling many
- immerse
to become fully and seriously involved
文法句型
dabble + in + [activity/subject]
dabble + with + [activity/subject]
用法筆記
Frequently used with 'in'. The subject is usually a person, and the object of the preposition is an activity, hobby, or field of knowledge.
常見錯誤
2. to play by gently putting a hand, foot, or other body part into water and moving
to play by gently putting a hand, foot, or other body part into water and moving it about.
The children dabbled in the shallow stream, laughing as the cool water touched their feet.
dabble in [body of water]
Maeve knelt by the pond and dabbled in the water, watching ripples from her fingers.
A duck dabbled at the pond edge, tipping forward to reach food below the surface.
Sven dabbled in the warm bathwater, enjoying the sensation after a long day of hiking.
The toddler dabbled happily in the puddle, splashing water everywhere with her small hands.
文法句型
dabble + in + [body of water]
用法筆記
Unlike sense 1, this sense describes a physical action in actual water, not a figurative engagement with an activity. Often used with children or animals.