gabble
Americanverb (used without object)
-
to speak or converse rapidly and unintelligibly; jabber.
-
(of hens, geese, etc.) to cackle.
verb (used with object)
noun
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rapid, unintelligible talk.
-
any quick succession of meaningless sounds.
verb
-
to utter (words, etc) rapidly and indistinctly; jabber
-
(intr) (of geese and some other birds or animals) to utter rapid cackling noises
noun
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of gabble
First recorded in 1570–80; perhaps from Middle Dutch gabbelen, or an expressive formation in English; cf. gab 1, gob 4, -le
Explanation
When you gabble, you talk so fast that you can barely be understood. A nervous public speaker might gabble for several minutes before she's able to get her point across. If you're gossiping about a neighbor and suddenly realize he's standing behind you, you might gabble for a while from the sheer awkwardness of the situation. Your grandmother might declare that she doesn't understand the music you like, saying, "They don't sing — they just gabble!" Gabble is a noun, too, meaning the sound itself: "See? It's all just gabble!" Gabble has a Dutch root, gabbelen, which is imitative — it sounds just like what it means.
Vocabulary lists containing gabble
Instead of "Said": Words That Sound Like What They Mean
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The Devil's Arithmetic
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Charlotte's Web
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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.
And Lucky’s monologue—veering inanely through realms including religion, academics and sports—is delivered by Mr. Thornton not, as it usually is, as a galloping pile of gabble, but with a musing seriousness.
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 29, 2025
Hugo House is steamy by comparison, a hotbed of nerves and gabble.
From Seattle Times • Mar. 13, 2024
At 41, he is disarmingly boyish, with a cherub’s fleshy face and a tendency to gabble enthusiastically when a subject excites him.
From New York Times • Jun. 2, 2016
His English is fine, at times endearingly experimental, but he is not a man to gabble.
From The Guardian • May 17, 2010
Music from an unseen orchestra was barely audible over the gabble of conversation.
From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
