sibilate

American  

[sib-uh-leyt] / ˈsɪb əˌleɪt /

verb (used without object)

sibilated, sibilating

1. to hiss.

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verb (used with object)

sibilated, sibilating

1. to utter or pronounce with a hissing sound.

sibilate British  

/ ˈsɪbɪˌleɪt /

verb

1. to pronounce or utter (words or speech) with a hissing sound

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Other Word Forms

• sibilation noun
• sibilator noun

Etymology

Origin of sibilate

First recorded in 1650–60; from Latin sībilātus (past participle of sībilāre “to hiss”); sibilant, -ate ¹

Example Sentences

And when I walk amid the foliage of these autumn days, it begins to quarrel with an excitable sibilating duck: “It’s rabbit season!”

From New York Times

No papers were asked for either at the Customs' station, some hundred yards farther on; but the Carabineros looked upon me as a lunatic, and significantly sibilated.

From Project Gutenberg

And there he sits, meditating over Carlyle’s crepitating fire and Rousseau’s writhing, sibilating flame.

From Project Gutenberg

"Answer me!" sibilated the stranger, his brows darkening beneath the wide brim of the hat, and a gleam of fire showing in his eyes.

From Project Gutenberg

He achieved what I take to be the supreme compliment of noisy hushings sibilated from the pit and gallery when the later curtains rose.

From Project Gutenberg