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Glite Dictionary
to dribble the basketball

to dribble the basketball

2.5
Bounce the basketball on the floor while moving to keep control
  • phrasal verb
  • /ˈdrɪbəl ðə ˈbæskɪtˌbɔl/
translation icon : driblar el baloncesto
  • During the game, she expertly dribbled the basketball past defenders to score a layup.

Examples

  • "Stork dribbled the basketball, edging his hip into me one step at a time.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • He practiced every day to improve how he could dribble the basketball smoothly while running.

  • To start the drill, the coach said, "First, dribble the basketball down the court and then take your shot."

Synonyms

to dribble
vsto dribble the basketball
27 2.3

To move a ball forward by touching it again and again, like in basketball

is specific to bouncing by hand while moving in the court sport
to drib
vsto dribble the basketball
7.0

To move a ball forward with small controlled touches

focuses on hand bouncing while moving in the court sport rather than foot touches

Antonyms

to pass
167 1.0

To throw or kick the ball to a teammate

Surface Forms

dribble the basketball infinitive
dribbled the basketball past
dribbled the basketball past participle
dribbling the basketball present participle
dribbles the basketball third person singular

Morphology

dribble + the + basketball

The meaning is directly and transparently derived from combining 'dribble' (to move a ball by tapping or bouncing) with the noun 'basketball' and the determiner 'the'—the phrase simply specifies dribbling that particular ball. This is a literal, compositional sports verb + object construction common across languages, so a B1 learner who knows the constituent words would readily understand it.

Etymology

Dribble the basketball comes from the simple image of a player bouncing a ball again and again while walking or running. The repeated bounce of the basketball keeps it under your hand so you can 'move' with it, so the phrase means to bounce the ball while moving in the game.