Brabbles

Part of speech: verb, noun

Definitions

1. To speak rapidly and indistinctly in a disorderly or meaningless way; to engage in continuous, petty, or trivial argument or quarrel; to utter confused or jumbled sounds or words
2. To chatter or babble incessantly without clear meaning; to dispute or wrangle over minor matters; to produce a stream of incoherent or overlapping noise
3. To talk quickly and unclearly, often resulting in confusion; to exchange trivial or petty disagreements; to make repetitive and muddled vocal noises or complaints

Etymology: "Brabbles" is the third-person singular form of "brabble," so it is the verb "brabble" in its present tense, and also the plural of the noun. The verb was borrowed from Middle Dutch "brabbelen," meaning "to quarrel" or "to jabber," and it is closely related to the English "babble." The Dutch and German "brabbeln" carry the same sense of talking in a confused, rambling way. The pairing with "babble" is the key to the word's sound. Both are imitative, built from the repeated syllables that a child or a stammering speaker produces, so "brabble" adds an extra "r" to that same rhythm of nonsense sounds. The Middle Dutch sense of quarreling survives in some uses, where the noise is less a gentle murmur than a noisy argument.

Synonyms: babbles, prattles, jabbers, chatters, murmurs

Antonyms: silences, quiets