babbling

[ bab-ling ]

/ ˈbæb lɪŋ /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR babbling ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

foolish or meaningless chatter; prattle: the constant babbling of idle gossips.

the random production of meaningless vocal sounds characteristic of infants after about the sixth week.

adjective

chattering or prattling aimlessly.

Nearby words

babbitt, irving, babbitt, milton, babbittry, babble, babbler, babbling, babbling brook, babblingly, babcock test, babe, babe in arms

Origin of babbling

Middle English word dating back to 1200–50; see origin at babble, -ing¹, -ing²

Related forms

bab·bling·ly, adverb

Definition for babbling (2 of 2)

babble

[ bab-uhl ]

/ ˈbæb əl /

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).

Origin of babble

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

SYNONYMS FOR babble

2 chitchat, gabble, drivel, blather.

3 murmur, gurgle, burble.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR babble ON THESAURUS.COM

Related forms

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

Can be confused

babble bauble bubble

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for babbling

Language was no barrier; just about every tongue on the planet was babbling away, caught up in the elaborate mystique of a cult.
Sherlock Holmes Vs. Jack the Ripper|Clive Irving|November 16, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I realize now that I spoke to her in paragraphs, babbling on and on, while she talked sparingly but concisely.
Marilyn and Me: On the 50th Anniversary of Monroe’s Death|Lawrence Schiller|August 5, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Children splash around in the babbling river where the infection began, women washing and bathing on rocks in the sun.
United Nations Still Denies its Troops Brought Cholera to Haiti|Jonathan M. Katz|April 4, 2012|DAILY BEAST
There was no babbling brook in the background—just the sound of New York traffic.
Wedding Bells at N.Y. City Hall|Jessica Bennett|July 25, 2011|DAILY BEAST

She was very small, as thin and light as thistle-down, ill-dressed, and as communicative as a babbling child.
Robert Elsmere|Mrs. Humphry Ward
"The babbling of a race in its infancy," it is said by the pandits of the Western world.
Avatras|Annie Besant
And Mr. Dingwell's babbling went on, but too indistinctly to be unravelled.
The Tenants of Malory|Joseph Sheridan Le Fanu
Comparative quiet only, for the players were babbling among themselves, living the game over again.
Andy at Yale|Roy Eliot Stokes
The young people did not obey the old man; they thought that he was not using sense, but just babbling in old man's fashion.
Fables for Children, Stories for Children, Natural Science Stories, Popular Education, Decembrists, Moral Tales|Leo Tolstoy

British Dictionary definitions for babbling

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

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