the.com/dribble

means To let liquid trickle out in small drops, or to bounce/move a ball forward in small controlled taps — basketball and soccer both claim it as a skill.

from Dribble emerged in the 1500s-1600s as a frequentative of 'drib,' itself a variant of 'drip' — the '-le' ending signaling repeated small action, the same pattern you see in 'sparkle' or 'crackle.' So a dribble is literally a drip that keeps happening. The sporting sense — nudging a ball along in small taps — arrived later, borrowing the same image: control expressed through a series of tiny, repeated releases rather than one big shove.