Gabbled

Part of speech: verb

Definitions

1. Spoke quickly and in a way that is difficult to understand
2. Uttered words rapidly with little clarity or coherence
3. Talked fast in a confusing or jumbled manner

Etymology: "Gabbled" is simply the past tense of "gabble," so its story is the story of the verb. "Gabble" is built from "gab," a word for idle or rapid talk, plus the suffix "-le," which in English usually marks a repeated or lighthearted action, as in "dabble" or "wriggle." Together they give a sense of chattering on and on, with the speech tumbling out faster than it can be understood. The roots of "gab" run deep in the Germanic languages. Its ancestor, Proto-Germanic "gabbōną," gave Old English "gabbian," meaning to mock or talk idly. That older sense of mockery survives in relatives across the family: Dutch "gabbelen" means to chatter or babble, while Low German "gabbeln" and Saterland Frisian "gabbelje" still carry the sense of teasing. Each branch kept a different half of the original meaning, so the word is in a sense split between jeering and jabbering.

Synonyms: jabbered, chattered