gurgle

American  

[gur-guhl] / ˈgɜr gəl /

verb (used without object)

gurgled, gurgling

1. to flow in a broken, irregular, noisy current.

   The water gurgled from the bottle.

   Synonyms:

   babble, burble, bubble

2. to make a sound as of water doing this (often used of birds or of human beings).

   Synonyms:

   babble, burble, bubble

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verb (used with object)

gurgled, gurgling

1. to utter or express with a gurgling sound.

   The baby gurgled her delight.

noun

1. the act or noise of gurgling.

gurgle British  

/ ˈɡɜːɡəl /

verb

1. (of liquids, esp of rivers, streams, etc) to make low bubbling noises when flowing

2. to utter low throaty bubbling noises, esp as a sign of contentment

   the baby gurgled with delight

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noun

1. the act or sound of gurgling

Other Word Forms

• gurgling adjective
• gurglingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of gurgle

First recorded in 1555–65; compare Dutch, Middle Low German gorgelen, German gurgeln “to gargle”; akin to Latin gurguliō “throat”

Example Sentences

She expected to hear icebergs calving off the glacier—perhaps even the low, garden-hose gurgle of a subglacial river gushing out from underneath the glacier.

From National Geographic • Sep. 7, 2023

But the last time I called, he could only gurgle on the phone, having suffered a stroke.

From Seattle Times • Mar. 24, 2023

I see it in the hummingbirds flitting past my window, hear it in the gurgle of my emptying dishwasher and feel it in the vibration of the cellphone in my pocket.

From Los Angeles Times • Feb. 17, 2023

Glisters of moisture beaded all over the boy’s body: detectably nervous sweat, wells of proto-tears, the gurgle of mucus rising in the nose and throat.

From Slate • Aug. 27, 2022

It had rained the night before, and the only sound was the gurgle of the runoff pouring down through the eroded gullies on the hillside.

From "The Glass Castle" by Jeannette Walls