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definitions

warble

1
[ wawr-buh l ]
/ ˈwɔr bəl /
|
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verb (used without object), war·bled, war·bling.

verb (used with object), war·bled, war·bling.

to sing (an aria or other selection) with trills, quavers, or melodious turns.
to express or celebrate in or as if in song; carol.

noun

a warbled song or succession of melodic trills, quavers, etc.
the act of warbling.

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RELATED WORDS

chirp, trill, sing, chant, carol, quaver, melody, yodel

Nearby words

  1. warangal,
  2. waratah,
  3. warb,
  4. warbeck,
  5. warbeck, perkin,
  6. warble fly,
  7. warbler,
  8. warbling vireo,
  9. warburg,
  10. warburg, otto heinrich

Origin of warble

1
1300–50; Middle English werble a tune < Old North French < Germanic; compare Old High German werbel something that turns, equivalent to werb- (cognate with Old English hweorf- in hweorfan to turn) + -el noun suffix
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for warbling

British Dictionary definitions for warbling

warble

1
/ (ˈwɔːbəl) /

verb

to sing (words, songs, etc) with trills, runs, and other embellishments
(tr) to utter in a song
US another word for yodel

noun

the act or an instance of warbling

Word Origin for warble

C14: via Old French werbler from Germanic; compare Frankish hwirbilōn (unattested), Old High German wirbil whirlwind; see whirl

warble

2
/ (ˈwɔːbəl) /

noun vet science

a small lumpy abscess under the skin of cattle caused by infestation with larvae of the warble fly
a hard tumorous lump of tissue on a horse's back, caused by prolonged friction of a saddle
Derived Formswarbled, adjective

Word Origin for warble

C16: of uncertain 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 warbling

warble

v.

c.1300, from Old North French werbler "to sing with trills and quavers," from Frankish *werbilon (cf. Old High German wirbil "whirlwind," German Wirbel "whirl, whirlpool, tuning peg, vertebra," Middle Dutch wervelen "to turn, whirl"); see whirl. The noun meaning "tune, melody" is recorded from c.1300. Related: Warbled; warbling.

Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper