trickle

1 of 2

verb

trick·​le ˈtri-kəl How to pronounce trickle (audio)
trickled; trickling ˈtri-k(ə-)liŋ How to pronounce trickle (audio)
Synonyms of tricklenext

intransitive verb

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

trickle

2 of 2

noun

: a thin, slow, or intermittent stream or movement

Synonyms of trickle

Relevance

Verb

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
He was immediately overcome with emotion and tears began to trickle down his cut face. — Ryan Gaydos, FOXNews.com, 3 Aug. 2026 The government opened 10 registration centers across Port-au-Prince in neighborhoods considered generally safe as dozens of hopeful Haitians trickled through. — ABC News, 30 July 2026
Noun
The Strait of Hormuz — which handled around one-fifth of global oil supply before the war — has seen traffic drop to a trickle with sporadic increase in ship transits on positive headlines. — Anniek Bao, CNBC, 3 Aug. 2026 Along the road, however, they are suddenly met with a trickle, and then a flood of refugees. — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 3 Aug. 2026 See All Example Sentences for trickle

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English trikelen, of imitative origin

First Known Use

Verb

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Noun

1580, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of trickle was in the 14th century

Phrases Containing trickle

Rhymes for trickle

See All Rhymes for trickle

Browse Nearby Words

trickish
trickle
trickle charge
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Trickle.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/trickle. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.

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

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

Is it 'nerve-racking' or 'nerve-wracking'?

'Sneaked' or 'Snuck': Which is correct?

Why does English have so many silent letters?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Dutch Treat and French Leave: Eight Place-Based Compounds

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of

The Longest Long Words List

How long is a jiffy?

Even More Bird Names that Sound Like Insults (and Sometimes Are)
See More

Popular

See More

7 Pairs of Commonly Confused Words

Dutch Treat and French Leave: Eight Place-Based Compounds

14 Phobias You Probably Haven't Heard Of
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
asap street sign
Figure Out These Acronyms ASAP You don't have to be a NASA engineer to get these...
See All