1. played music in an improvised, casual way
Usage: informal
2. thought about something in a casual, exploratory way
Usage: informal
3. caught catfish by hand using bare hands or simple tools
Usage: regional; fishing

Examples

• He noodled around on the guitar for an hour.
• She noodled with some ideas for her presentation.
• The jazz musician noodled a few bars before the main song.
• I noodled over the problem all weekend.
• They noodled for catfish in the muddy river.
• The pianist noodled softly in the background.
• He noodled through various solutions to the puzzle.