Usage 1: In the third act of Shakespeare's 'A Midsummer Night's Dream' (1590) Titania urges, "Be kind and courteous to this gentleman; Hop in his walks and gambol in his eyes; Feed him with apricocks and dewberries, With purple grapes, green figs, and mulberries." In the US we no longer double the [l] when adding suffixes like –ed (gamboled), –ing (gamboling), and –er (gamboler) but doubling is still acceptable.

Suggested usage: Gamboling these days is most often a joy of the immature: "Francis loved to watch the lambs gamboling in the meadow in the spring." But we must bring gamboling in from the countryside: "Claxton apparently received his raise, judging from the way he gamboled out of the boss's office." Everyone feels the most like gamboling in the spring, so now is the time to gamble a weekend on gamboling; you have nothing to lose but the blues (if you aren't carted off for further observation).

Etymology: From French gambade "skipping or frisking about" from Italian gambata "kick" based on gamba "leg," the Late Latin word for "hoof" and also the origin of the English slang term gam "leg." Compare the Italian with the French "jambe." The ending -ade apparently was confused with the then more frequently used –auld, which eventually lost its [d], resulting in "gambol" rather than "gambade." (No, "gamble" is unrelated; it comes from "game." Better to gambol than gamble in Las Vegas.)