rumble
Americanverb (used without object)
-
rumbles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rumbled,
past participle, past
-
rumbling
present participle
verb (used with object)
-
rumbles,
present (3rd person singular)
-
rumbled,
past participle, past
-
rumbling
present participle
-
to give forth or utter with a rumbling sound.
to rumble a command.
-
to cause to make or move with a rumbling sound.
to rumble a wagon over the ground.
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to subject to the action of a rumble or tumbling box, as for the purpose of polishing.
noun
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rumbles
plural
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a deep, heavy, somewhat muffled, continuous sound.
the rumble of tanks across a bridge.
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a rear part of a carriage containing seating accommodations, as for servants, or space for baggage.
-
a tumbling box.
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Slang. a street fight between rival teenage gangs.
verb
-
to make or cause to make a deep resonant sound
thunder rumbled in the sky
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to move with such a sound
the train rumbled along
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(tr) to utter with a rumbling sound
he rumbled an order
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(tr) to tumble (metal components, gemstones, etc) in a barrel of smooth stone in order to polish them
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informal (tr) to find out about (someone or something); discover (something)
the police rumbled their plans
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slang (intr) to be involved in a gang fight
noun
-
a deep resonant sound
-
a widespread murmur of discontent
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another name for tumbler
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slang a gang fight
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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rumblesimple
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rumblessimple
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have rumbledperfect
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has rumbledperfect
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am rumblingprogressive
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are rumblingprogressive
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is rumblingprogressive
-
have been rumblingperfect progressive
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has been rumblingperfect progressive
Past
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rumbledsimple
-
had rumbledperfect
-
was rumblingprogressive
-
were rumblingprogressive
-
had been rumblingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of rumble
First recorded in 1325–75; Middle English verb romblen, rumblen; compare Dutch rommelen, probably imitative of the sound; 1940–45 rumble for def. 3
Explanation
Are you ready to rumble? To rumble is to throw down, or fight. If you hear a truck rumble down your street, don’t put up your dukes — to rumble also means to make a low, deep sound. Thunder rumbles just before you see lightning flash, and dogs sometimes rumble a low warning growl when they see someone unfamiliar. As a noun, rumble can mean "a low sound," “a seat in the back of a carriage” (the rumble seat) or " a street fight." It's a little old fashioned today to call a gang brawl a rumble, but if you've ever seen the movie "West Side Story," you've seen the rumble between the Jets and the Sharks.
Vocabulary lists containing rumble
The Outsiders
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Game Changer
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"A Contest of Riddles"
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
See Examples For:
The following song, “Different Religion,” filled with clanging effects, an appealing subsonic rumble, and vocals from Cole Haden of Model/Actriz, might be the record’s finest moment.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 22, 2026
The volcano's sustained explosive activity weakened on September 6, although Anak Krakatau continued to rumble.
From Science Daily ● Sep. 18, 2026
Now the constant rumble of construction machinery has been replaced by a steady stream of vans and golf carts ferrying people to and from the paddock for this weekend's races.
From Barron's ● Sep. 12, 2026
“There’s like a million different signs that the freeway ends,” he said Wednesday: flashing lights, signs, rumble strips.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 2, 2026
The sound of children laughing drifts out of open windows, and the rumble of the city is dampened by leafy trees and manicured hedges.
From "South of Somewhere" by Kalena Miller
As the debate rumbles on, the staff at the Middle Ale continue serving up pints of Guinness and Lidl’s own range of lagers and wines.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 28, 2026
And a split-second later the crowd saw it, too — their quiet rumbles rising to a thrilling roar, as if they knew what was coming next.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 5, 2026
For cricket fans, journalists and pundits, this is also peak time for the eternal debate that rumbles on about the future of The Hundred, its relevances, and its success.
From BBC ● Aug. 15, 2026
The new month sees U.S. stocks at record highs as an inexorable rally rumbles on.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 1, 2026
A snore of kingly proportions rumbles from the bedroom.
From "Water for Elephants" by Sara Gruen
It was a set-up so convoluted that it's doubtful that even Ross, who has been permanently paranoid about being murdered in plain sight, rumbled them.
From BBC ● Oct. 17, 2026
“In a low energy 24 hours the Middle East story has rumbled on as concerns about fresh US-Iran hostilities pushed oil prices higher still,” Deutsche Bank’s Jim Reid wrote in a Tuesday note.
From MarketWatch ● Sep. 8, 2026
Last year, more than 1.8 million trucks rumbled across the aging aquamarine span, which opened in 1929 and is one of the continent’s busiest land-border crossings.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026
All around this one personal tragedy are the sights and smells of many others from that moment Wednesday evening when the earth abruptly groaned and rumbled with quakes measuring 7.2 and 7.5, in rapid succession.
From Barron's ● Jun. 28, 2026
A low moan rumbled up through the whale’s body.
From "The Wild Robot Escapes" by Peter Brown
The crack of the bat echoed the thunder that had been rumbling outside of the roofed ballpark for much of the afternoon.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 13, 2026
So when a calf disappeared into the tall grass recently, he roamed among the herd making low, rumbling grunts.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
An eyewitness told the Daily Tribune newspaper that she heard a loud rumbling moments before the collapse.
From BBC ● May 24, 2026
Its internal speaker plays a rumbling soundtrack that sends the drumsticks attached to the instrument flittering, giving the sense of a ghostly presence tapping out a brooding dirge.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
And then Max heard the sound, too: a rumbling, as if someone was marching toward them.
From "The School for Whatnots" by Margaret Peterson Haddix
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
