Definition

Noun: 1. A person who dribbles: Specifically, someone who lets saliva flow uncontrollably from the mouth, often used to describe a young child or an individual who cannot control this bodily function. 2. A person who talks nonsense: Someone whose speech is foolish, trivial, or lacking in sense; a person who talks in a silly or childish manner.

Usage and Examples

• Referring to someone who dribbles:
  • The nurse patiently cared for the elderly driveller.
  • As a baby, he was quite a driveller and always needed a bib.
• Referring to someone who talks foolishly:
  • Don't listen to him; he's just a driveller with no real knowledge of the topic.
  • The meeting was hijacked by a driveller who wouldn't stop talking about irrelevant gossip.

Advanced Usage and Notes

• The term driveller is often pejorative and can be considered insulting, especially when used to describe someone's intellectual capacity or the quality of their speech.
• It is derived from the verb drivel, meaning to let saliva flow from the mouth or to talk nonsense.
• In older or more literary contexts, it can imply a state of senility or extreme foolishness.

Variants and Related Words

• Drivel (noun/verb): Saliva flowing from the mouth; or foolish talk. To drivel is to let saliva flow or to talk nonsense.
  • He dismissed the article as mere drivel. (noun)
  • The old man would often drivel on about the past. (verb)
• Dribbler (noun): A more common and neutral synonym for a person who dribbles, especially in medical or sports contexts (e.g., a basketball player who dribbles the ball).

Synonyms

• Dribbler: (for the saliva meaning)
• Fool: A silly or stupid person.
• Idiot: A very foolish person.
• Babbler: Someone who talks incessantly or foolishly.
• Blatherer: Someone who talks at length in a nonsensical way.

Antonyms

• Sage: A profoundly wise person.
• Orator: A skilled and eloquent public speaker.
• Eloquent person: Someone who speaks in a clear, persuasive, and meaningful way.

Noun

1. a person who dribbles; he needs a bib"
   • that baby is a dribbler
2. someone whose talk is trivial drivel