What does "dapple" mean?
Dapple: One of the spots on a dappled animal. He has . . . as many eyes on his body as my gray mare hath dapples. Sir P. Sidney.
Additional senses
- 2.Marked with spots of different shades of color; spotted; variegated; as, a dapple horse. Some dapple mists still floated along the peaks. Sir W. Scott. Note: The word is used in composition to denote that some color is variegated or marked with spots; as, dapple-bay; dapple-gray. His steed was all dapple-gray. Chaucer. O, swiftly can speed my dapple-gray steed. Sir W. Scott.
- 3.To variegate with spots; to spot. The gentle day, . . . Dapples the drowsy east with spots of gray. Shak. The dappled pink and blushing rose. Prior.
Sources
- Webster's Unabridged Dictionary, 1913 edition (public domain, via GCIDE / Project Gutenberg).
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- Published: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00 · Modified: 2026-07-17T00:00:00-07:00