the definition of tweet

[tweet]

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noun

a weak chirping sound, as of a young or small bird.

Digital Technology. a message posted on the Twitter social media service and website: the message may include text, links, photos, or videos.

verb (used without object)

to make a weak chirping sound.

Digital Technology. to post a message on Twitter: She tweets a lot about movies.

verb (used with object)

Digital Technology. to post (a message) on Twitter for (people) to read: He tweeted his fans after the event.

Origin of tweet

First recorded in 1835–45; imitative

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

Related Words for tweet

chirp, twitter, chirrup

Examples from the Web for tweet

Contemporary Examples of tweet

The tweet set off an Internet firestorm and was retweeted nearly 15,000 times in less than an hour.
Neil deGrasse Tyson Trolls Christians on Christmas
Ben Jacobs
December 25, 2014
That tweet came from Shay Horse, whose bio lists him as an independent photojournalist with ties to Occupy Wall Street.
The Monsters Who Screamed for Dead Cops
Jacob Siegel
December 23, 2014
“Bare [sic] with me on vlogmas,” she told her fans in a Tweet.
Meet Zoella—The Newbie Author Whose Book Sales Topped J.K. Rowling
Lucy Scholes
December 11, 2014
So I tweet things like "you don't owe white people any convos" to support others.
The Unbearable Whiteness of Protesting
Rawiya Kameir, Judnick Mayard
December 10, 2014
Trierweiler has also expressed regret over the tweet in a recent interview with the U.K. Observer.
Hell Hath No Fury Like Valerie Trierweiler, the French President’s Ex
Lizzie Crocker
November 28, 2014

Historical Examples of tweet

Tweet was all right, and I hain't got anything to say against her.
The Coast of Bohemia
William Dean Howells
The swallow sang "Tweet, tweet," and from his song came the whole story.
Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales
Hans Christian Andersen
"Tweet," they replied and drew back the left foot three times.
Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales
Hans Christian Andersen
It could not be from fear of us, certainly, though I did say 'tweet' rather loudly.
Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales
Hans Christian Andersen
This must be the beautiful,—tweet,—only this is larger than a peacock.
Hans Andersen's Fairy Tales
Hans Christian Andersen

British Dictionary definitions for tweet

interjection

(often reiterated) an imitation or representation of the thin chirping sound made by small or young birds

verb

(intr) to make this sound

noun

a thin chirping sound

a short message posted on the Twitter website

Word Origin for tweet

C19: 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

Word Origin and History for tweet

1845, imitative of the sound made by a small bird. As a verb by 1872. Related: Tweeted; tweeting. As the word for what one does on the Twitter microblogging service, by 2007.