/ ˈsprɪŋkl; NAmE / verb , noun
■ verb
1.
[ vn ] sprinkle A on / onto / over B | sprinkle B with A to shake small pieces of sth or drops of a liquid on sth :
She sprinkled sugar over the strawberries.
She sprinkled the strawberries with sugar.
Sprinkle chocolate on top of the cake.
2.
[ vn ] [ usually passive ] sprinkle sth with sth to include a few of sth in sth else
SYN strew :
His poems are sprinkled with quotations from ancient Greek.
3.
[ v ] ( NAmE ) if it sprinkles , it rains lightly
SYN drizzle :
It's only sprinkling. We can still go out.
■ noun [ sing. ]
1.
= sprinkling :
Add a sprinkle of cheese and serve.
2.
( especially NAmE ) light rain :
We've only had a few sprinkles (of rain) recently.
••
WORD ORIGIN
late Middle English : perhaps from Middle Dutch sprenkelen .