babble

verb

bab·​ble ˈba-bəl How to pronounce babble (audio)
babbled; babbling ˈba-b(ə-)liŋ How to pronounce babble (audio)
Synonyms of babblenext

intransitive verb

1
a
: to talk enthusiastically or excessively
b
: to utter meaningless or unintelligible sounds
2
: to make sounds as though babbling

transitive verb

1
: to utter in an incoherently or meaninglessly repetitious manner
2
: to reveal by talk that is too free
babble noun
babblement
ˈba-bəl-mənt How to pronounce babble (audio)
noun
babbler
ˈba-b(ə-)lər How to pronounce babble (audio)
noun

Synonyms

See All Synonyms & Antonyms in Thesaurus

Examples of babble in a Sentence

Pay no attention to her. She's just babbling. He'll babble on about sports all night if you let him. Her cousins were babbling in an unfamiliar dialect.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Saki’s one-year-old, Enzo, is periodically trotted out on Winters’s hip, a sometimes babbling manifestation of everything her character is juggling. — Laura Regensdorf, Vogue, 25 Apr. 2025 Worse still, perhaps, at times general-purpose generative AI will produce a heaping of psychobabble, seemingly impressive sounding mental health advice that is nothing more than babbling psychological words of nothingness, see my analysis at the link here. — Lance Eliot, Forbes.com, 22 Apr. 2025 Fathers shushed babbling toddlers as their wives snuck out to change infants’ diapers. — Carlos Nogueras Ramos, Chicago Tribune, 4 Mar. 2025 This stunning 215-foot-tall limestone arch was carved over many years by babbling Cedar Creek. — Erin Gifford, Southern Living, 2 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for babble

Word History

Etymology

Middle English babelen, probably of imitative origin

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of babble was in the 13th century

Rhymes for babble

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Browse Nearby Words

babblative
babble
babbling
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Babble.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/babble. Accessed 10 May. 2025.

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Kids Definition

babble

1 of 2 verb
bab·​ble
ˈbab-əl
babbled; babbling
ˈbab-(ə-)liŋ
1
a
: to make meaningless sounds
b
: to talk foolishly or too much
2
: to make the sound of a brook
babbler
ˈbab-(ə-)lər
noun

babble

2 of 2 noun
1
: talk that is not clear
2
: the sound of a brook

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