babble

[ bab-uhl ]

/ ˈbæb əl /

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See synonyms for: babble / babbling on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object), bab·bled, bab·bling.

to utter sounds or words imperfectly, indistinctly, or without meaning.

to talk idly, irrationally, excessively, or foolishly; chatter or prattle.

to make a continuous, murmuring sound.

verb (used with object), bab·bled, bab·bling.

to utter in an incoherent, foolish, or meaningless fashion.

to reveal foolishly or thoughtlessly: to babble a secret.

noun

inarticulate or imperfect speech.

foolish, meaningless, or incoherent speech; prattle.

a murmuring sound or a confusion of sounds.

babbling (def. 2).

Telecommunications. a confused mixture of extraneous sounds in a circuit, resulting from cross talk from other channels.Compare cross talk (def. 1).

OTHER WORDS FOR babble

2 chitchat, gabble, drivel, blather.

3 murmur, gurgle, burble.

See synonyms for babble on Thesaurus.com

QUIZ

CAN YOU ANSWER THESE COMMON GRAMMAR DEBATES?

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Question 1 of 7

Which sentence is correct?

His boss, whom he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

His boss, who he admires, is waiting to meet with him about the big project.

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Origin of babble

First recorded in 1200–50; Middle English babelen; cognate with Old Norse babbla, Dutch babbelen, German pappelen

OTHER WORDS FROM babble

outbabble, verb (used with object), out·bab·bled, out·bab·bling.

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH babble

babble , bauble, bubble

Words nearby babble

babassu oil, Babbage, babbitt, Babbitt metal, Babbittry, babble, babbler, babbling, babbling brook, Babcock test, babe

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use babble in a sentence

This ever-expanding bubble of earthly babble has already reached many stars.
Blasting Out Earth’s Location in Hopes of Reaching Aliens Is Controversial—Two Teams of Scientists Are Doing It Anyway|Chris Impey|May 1, 2022|Singularity Hub
The researchers then analyzed the baby bat songs to see if they met eight universal characteristics of human babbles including early onset, repetition, rhythmicity, universality, and occurrence in non-social settings.
Both bats and humans test out talking as infants|Sara Kiley Watson|August 20, 2021|Popular-Science
The gorilla dolls have electronics inside for realistic baby babble.
What makes one mom different from another|Abigail Tucker|June 4, 2021|Washington Post
Babbles jokes that many users, including himself, still seem to be cycling through the final three stages.
The Subreddit /r/Collapse Has Become the Doomscrolling Capital of the Internet. Can Its Users Break Free?|Billy Perrigo|October 30, 2020|Time

The anti-gun contingent stands before an Everest of obstacles, a wall of patriotic babble about Second Amendment privileges.
As Parents We’re All Gun Violence Cowards|William Giraldi|May 30, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In fact, I described them this way myself when I wrote about infant memory two years ago for Babble.
What Your Baby Remembers|Heather Turgeon|November 9, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Her work has appeared in The Boston Globe, Washington Post, Salon, and Babble.
You're Pregnant, Have a Drink|Kate Tuttle|October 6, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Taffy Brodesser-Akner has written for the Los Angeles Times, Salon, and Babble, among other publications.
Who's Killing the Soaps?|Taffy Brodesser-Akner|December 14, 2009|DAILY BEAST
Baby Kirst had fulfilled his destiny and would babble his way through the forests no more.
A Virginia Scout|Hugh Pendexter
But after that momentary and inexplicable experience, the babble of thought went on as before.
The Daughters of Danaus|Mona Caird
As they went down into the valley of the Thyme, the babble of the stream rose into the air like a perennial laughter.
Tales and Fantasies|Robert Louis Stevenson
He does not say cryptic things or babble trivialities in the name of the mighty Dead—the mighty Damned or the mighty Blest.
The Affable Stranger|Peter McArthur
All was silence, except somewhere, secluded and unseen, the splash and babble of falling water.
Dream Tales and Prose Poems|Ivan Turgenev

British Dictionary definitions for babble

babble

/ (ˈbæbəl) /

verb

to utter (words, sounds, etc) in an incoherent or indistinct jumble

(intr) to talk foolishly, incessantly, or irrelevantly

(tr) to disclose (secrets, confidences, etc) carelessly or impulsively

(intr) (of streams, birds, etc) to make a low murmuring or bubbling sound

noun

incoherent or foolish speech; chatter

a murmuring or bubbling sound

Derived forms of babble

babblement, nounbabbling, noun, adjective

Word Origin for babble

C13: compare Dutch babbelen, Swedish babbla, French babiller to prattle, Latin babulus fool; probably all of imitative origin

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

babble

OTHER WORDS FOR babble

Origin of babble

OTHER WORDS FROM babble

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH babble

Words nearby babble

Words related to babble

How to use babble in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for babble

Derived forms of babble

Word Origin for babble