Hi Ootred. The word "dribbling" is telling in this instance. Elderly people who have declined in health and mental acuity are often said to dribble on themselves as their minds falter, that is to say they dribble drool from their mouths. So, in this case, the person is foolish and incompetent the way an older individual is who is losing his or her mind.

dribbling can be a synonym for drooling a drooling fool would be someone too stupid to close their mouth to keep the saliva in. it's not a common phrase

https://www.askdifference.com/drivel-vs-dribble/ drivel - to talk nonsense a driveling fool = someone who talks nonsense dribble - to drool a dribbling fool, a drooling fool = someone who has saliva drop from their mouth while talking ...

Hello! I would like to add that people usually dribble when they are not in control of themselves so they make fools of themselves. We also dribble in our sleep sometimes (it's quite natural) but this is normally something that one would be teased about. I hope that helps!

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