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  • twitter
    twitter
    verb (used without object)
    to utter a succession of small, tremulous sounds, as a bird.
  • Twitter
    Twitter
    a brand name for a social media service and website where registered users may post text that is limited to a certain number of characters, as well as links, photos, or videos.
Synonyms

twitter

1 American  
[twit-er] / ˈtwɪt ər /

verb (used without object)

twitters, present (3rd person singular) twittered, past participle, past twittering present participle
  1. to utter a succession of small, tremulous sounds, as a bird.

  2. to talk lightly and rapidly, especially of trivial matters; chatter.

  3. to titter; giggle.

  4. to tremble with excitement or the like; be in a flutter.

  5. Digital Technology. tweet.


verb (used with object)

twitters, present (3rd person singular) twittered, past participle, past twittering present participle
  1. to express or utter by twittering.

noun

  1. an act of twittering.

  2. a twittering sound.

  3. a state of tremulous excitement.

    Synonyms:
    fluster, tizzy, flutter
Twitter 2 American  
Trademark.
  1. a brand name for a social media service and website where registered users may post text that is limited to a certain number of characters, as well as links, photos, or videos.


twitter 1 British  
/ ˈtwɪtə /

verb

  1. (intr) (esp of a bird) to utter a succession of chirping sounds

  2. (intr) to talk or move rapidly and tremulously

  3. (intr) to giggle

    her schoolmates twittered behind their desks

  4. (tr) to utter in a chirping way

"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

noun

  1. a twittering sound, esp of a bird

  2. the act of twittering

  3. a state of nervous excitement (esp in the phrase in a twitter )

"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
Twitter 2 British  
/ ˈtwɪtə /

noun

  1. a website where people can post short messages about their current activities

"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

verb

  1. (intr; sometimes not capital) to write a short message on the Twitter website

"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

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

Etymology

Origin of twitter

1325–75; Middle English twiteren (v.); akin to German zwitschern

Explanation

To twitter is to make a sound like a bird's trill or chirp. One of the nicest things about spring is the sound of birds as they twitter in the trees. Tweet tweet! When birds twitter, they make a staccato, musical chirping sound. You can call this sound itself a twitter too. Sometimes the word is used to describe a similar sound made by chattering humans. In the fourteenth century, the word was twiteren, developed from an imitation of the sound that twittering birds make. Twitter is also a social media website founded in 2006, on which people post 140-character bursts of information called tweets. Wonder where they got that idea.

Keep Reading on Vocabulary.com

Vocabulary lists containing twitter

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.

Meanwhile, as of March 31, Grok and Twitter had allegedly 1.3 billion global users, although less than half were active.

From MarketWatch • Jun. 10, 2026

Platform owner Elon Musk previously touted changes to the verification badge as "the only realistic way to address advanced AI bot swarms taking over" after buying Twitter.

From BBC • Jun. 9, 2026

There’s a reason Musk bought Twitter, a reason Pratt talks the way he does about statistics, and a reason amateur creators blow so much money on their A.I. bills.

From Slate • Jun. 3, 2026

Or maybe fun and games ceased some 20 years ago when Facebook, Twitter and Instagram launched and anonymous threats could be dispatched by anyone with an account.

From Los Angeles Times • Jun. 1, 2026

I could scroll through Twitter until my vision blurs and then collapse on my bed like an Oscar Wilde character.

From "We Are Okay" by Nina LaCour

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