Twitterings

Part of speech: noun

Definitions

1. The high-pitched sounds produced by small birds
2. the light, rapid conversations or chatter often characterized by frivolity
3. a term referring to the short, quick bursts of communication often found in social media contexts

Etymology: "Twitterings" is the plural of "twittering," a noun for light, quick, chattering talk. Its root is the verb "twitter," which imitates the high, rapid sound of small birds, such as swallows and sparrows. The noun "twittering" follows that same pattern: a sound-based word that carries the sense of rapid, thin, excitable noise. The plural form suggests many such bursts of chatter, each one a little flutter of trivial conversation. Because the word began as a description of birdsong, it has always carried a sense of lightness, and that quality is what the modern meaning keeps.

Synonyms: chirps, tweets, chattering