gambol

[ gam-buhl ]

verb (used without object)

, gam·boled, gam·bol·ing or (especially British) gam·bolled, gam·bol·ling.

1. to skip about, as in dancing or playing; frolic.

   Synonyms: romp, frisk, caper, spring

noun

1. a skipping or frisking about; frolic.

gambol

/ ˈɡæmbəl /

verb

1. intr to skip or jump about in a playful manner; frolic

noun

1. a playful antic; frolic

Word History and Origins

Origin of gambol¹

1495–1505; earlier gambold, gambald, gamba(u)de, from Middle French gambade, variant of gambado ²( def )

Word History and Origins

Origin of gambol¹

C16: from French gambade; see gambado ², jamb

Example Sentences

Specifically, the eye-popping assemblages that greeted Kamala Harris and her running mate, Tim Walz, in last week’s getting-to-you know gambol through battleground states.

From Los Angeles Times

George Will, long the favorite columnist of traditional Republicans, four years ago urged voters to reject the party across the board, from Trump to “his congressional enablers, especially the senators who still gambol around his ankles with a canine hunger for petting.”

From Los Angeles Times

Her puppies gambol around her, looking healthy and excited, but everyone else seems momentarily stunned by this story.

From Los Angeles Times

The standouts include two early works: dark moody, expressionistic paintings from 1960 indebted to Gauguin, “Wagadu” and “The Gambol.”

From New York Times

In 2017, he and a few friends put on the first-ever flash Bob, a campy gambol down the same Santa Monica street that served as their most recent stage, with Coconato wearing the yellow Bob shirt.

From New York Times

Related Words

• cavort
• frolic
• prance