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Partly from the verb paddle("to splash, dabble"; see below) and partly from Middle Englishpadell(“small spade”).
Middle English padell is from Medieval Latinpadela, itself of uncertain origin: perhaps an alteration of Middle English *spaddle (see also spaddle), a diminutive of spade; or from Latinpatella(“pan, plate”), the diminutive of patina, or a merger of the two. Compare Ancient Greekπηδάλιον(pēdálion, “rudder, steering oar”), derived from πηδός(pēdós, “the blade of an oar; an oar”).
A two-handed implement consisting of a shaft with one or two blades attached to the end(s) used to propel a canoe, kayak or a small boat. A paddle is unattached to the boat and freely operated with the hands, compared with an oar which is attached to the boat at a pivot point.
A single-bladed version is typically used on canoes and some other small boats.
A double-bladed version with blades at each end of the shaft is used for kayaking.
The use of a paddle to propel a boat; a session of paddling.
2021, Jordan Wylie, The Power of the Paddle:
I managed one mighty paddle of 38km up the coast to Wicklow before the next bloody storm was due to hit.
A flat board with a number of holes or indentations, used to carry small alcoholic drinks such as shots.
2019, Ted Bruning, The Bar Owners' Handbook, page 111:
And it really is a paddle, too, with a blade big enough to hold several sampling glasses of different beers (known for some reason as a 'flight') for customers to try. Beer paddles have become very popular in American craft beer bars: […]
A flat limb of an aquatic animal, adapted for swimming.
A sea turtle's paddles make it swim almost as fast as land tortoises are slow.
In a sluice, a panel that controls the flow of water.
(medicine) A flap of attached skin that has been cut away from a wound.
2009, Berish Strauch, Luis O. Vasconez, M.d., Elizabeth J. Hall-Findlay, Grabb's Encyclopedia of Flaps - Volume 1, page 373:
A large ( 13 x 25 cm ) paddle of skin was used to cover a large wound following a temporal bone resection.
2012, Mark L. Urken, Mack L. Cheney, Keith E. Blackwell, Atlas of Regional and Free Flaps for Head and Neck Reconstruction, page 235:
About 10% of perforators to the skin paddle of the flap are septocutaneous blood vessels that travel though the intermuscular septum that separates the rectus femoris muscle from the vastus lateralis muscle.
handheld electrode used for defibrillation or cardioversion
(slang) hand
flap of skin cut away from a wound
The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.
Recorded since 1530, probably cognate with Low Germanpaddeln(“to tramp about”), frequentative form of padjen(“to tramp, run in short steps”), from pad (also in Dutch dialects). Compare also Saterland Frisianpaddelje(“to paddle”).
Verb
paddle (third-person singular simple presentpaddles, present participlepaddling, simple past and past participlepaddled)