drizzle
/ˈdrɪz(ə)l
/noun
1 [mass noun] Light rain falling in very fine drops: Scotland will be cloudy with patchy drizzle [in singular]: a steady drizzle has been falling since 3 a.m....
- A light drizzle of rain fell, gradually picking up speed and fury.
- The clouds that were grey in the morning were now black and a light drizzle of rain fell on her face.
- By this time, the light drizzle had become steady rain.
Synonyms
fine rain, Scotch mist, sprinkle of rain, light shower, spray;
Northern English mizzle
2(In cooking) a thin stream of a liquid ingredient trickled over food: raw mushrooms, thinly sliced and served with lemon, a little salt, and a drizzle of olive oil...
- As you add more oil, you can increase the rate of drizzle to a thin stream.
- It arrived, aromatic strips of grilled meat on a mound of arugula with a crisp baked potato and a drizzle of peppery olive oil.
- Serve with crostini and a drizzle of extra virgin olive oil, if desired.
Synonyms
trickle, dribble, drip, drop, droplet, stream, rivulet, runnel;
topping, covering, sprinkle, sprinkling
verb
1 [no object] (it drizzles, it is drizzling, etc.) Rain lightly: it’s started to drizzle...
- Leanne had awoken to another dreary day, the rain drizzling lightly.
- The rain lightly drizzled around us, the air was chilly and I was thankful for wearing my warm coat over a windcheater.
- On the morning of the funeral, the sky was grey and rain was drizzling; perfect funeral weather.
Synonyms
rain lightly, shower, spot, spit;
Northern English mizzle;
North American sprinkle
2 [with object] (In cooking) trickle a thin stream of (a liquid ingredient) over food: drizzle the clarified butter over the top...
- Lay them in a single layer on a baking sheet, and drizzle them with a thin stream of olive oil - it doesn't take much.
- As before, it looked great - the sauce was drizzled around the mousse and a spear of thin biscuit jutted dramatically out of the top.
- In a slow stream, drizzle in enough oil to bind ingredients together until thick and creamy, like mayonnaise.
Synonyms
trickle, sprinkle, drip, dribble, pour, splash, spill
Derivatives
drizzly
/ adjective (drizzlier, drizzliest) ...- ‘I hereby declare this to be a holiday, Dolly,’ I said, standing in the kitchen doorway contemplating a damp, drizzly, rather chilly and miserable day.
- It was cold and windy and drizzly, so the only thing to do was order a bacon sandwich and a mug of coffee, and watch the leaves fall off the trees by the canal.
- I don't know about you, but I enjoy drizzly, cold winter afternoons - night closing in, lights from the traffic reflected in puddles, hurrying to get back to a nice warm home, that kind of thing.
Origin
Mid 16th century: probably based on Old English drēosan 'to fall', of Germanic origin; probably related to dreary.
dreary from Old English:
In Saxon times dreary was ‘gory, bloody’. It came from a word meaning ‘gore’ which was related to Old English drēosan ‘to drop, fall’, the source of dreary drizzle (mid 16th century). The modern sense ‘depressingly dull and bleak’ did not develop until the mid 17th century.