chattered; chattering; chatters
1
: to utter rapid short sounds suggestive of language but inarticulate and indistinct
squirrels chattered angrily
2
: to talk idly, incessantly, or fast
3
a
: to click repeatedly or uncontrollably
teeth chattering with cold
b
: to vibrate rapidly in cutting
a chattering tool
c
: to vibrate especially audibly as a consequence of repeated sticking and slipping
chattering brakes
: to utter rapidly, idly, or indistinctly
chatterer
noun
1
: the action or sound of chattering
2
: idle talk : prattle
3
: electronic and especially radio communication between individuals engaged in a common or related form of activity
also
: such chatter regarding future hostile activities
4
: a person who participates in online chat
Excite, Inc. … reports that users log a total of 7.5 to 8 million chat minutes on an average day. Half of online chatters are aged 18 to 34, and 15 percent are under age 17.—
Rebecca Piirto Heath
Rebecca Piirto Heath
Synonyms
Examples of chatter in a Sentence
Verb
Children chattered in the middle of the playground.
My teeth were chattering from the cold.
Birds chattered in the trees.
Noun
heard the chatter of squirrels
pleasant chatter over morning coffee
Recent Examples on the WebRobert D. McFadden, New York Times, 1 Mar. 2024
Baboons will sometimes chatter at the moon, or at the sun at dawn.
—Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 12 Feb. 2024
Now Ford’s binoculars came to rest on Tobin Rote, Bobby Layne’s backup, who was firing warm-up passes, grinning, chattering with coaches.
—Bill Morris, Detroit Free Press, 28 Jan. 2024
Song-tae Kim and 17 of his friends from church chattered boisterously, some fueled by soju, with the remnants of their dinner — black bean noodles and spicy seafood noodle soup — spread out in front of them.
—Ashley Ahn, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2024
The camera often focuses on her face as the adults chatter around her; this is the way of children, sometimes absorbing and struggling with the stuff grownups are saying and other times just ignoring it, taking the world in at their own pace.
—Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 26 Jan. 2024
As its title suggests, the piece requires two pianos, between which Poulenc creates a playful, chattering dialogue.
—Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 1 Feb. 2024
My jaw clenched, my breath quickened, my teeth chattered.
—Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 4 Jan. 2024
There was a crackle of energy from the presence of chattering bodies in a room and the warm cacophony of string musicians tuning instruments.
—Carolina A. Miranda, Los Angeles Times, 26 Dec. 2023
Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Apr. 2024
Editorial discussions about John Travolta, Lisa Marie Presley and Bill Cosby were now interspersed with chatter about Hillary Clinton, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio.
—Lachlan Cartwright, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2024
There's also the constant chatter about regulating Big Tech, including numerous testy hearings over the past few years, but still no legislation.
—USA TODAY, 2 Apr. 2024
Continued chatter surrounding a consumption upgrade with appliances and autos the focus.
—Brendan Ahern, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
The Princess’s cancer announcement fell over the chatter of the past few weeks like a bucket of cold water.
—Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2024
At certain points, the recordings pick up clacks on the floorboards, tapes winding, studio chatter.
—Leah Lu, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2024
Many have asked: Why not just end the chatter by releasing a short video explanation or a statement squaring some of the recent issues?
—Alexander Smith, NBC News, 19 Mar. 2024
Awards season chatter about the dark stylings of Oppenheimer, snow-white chill of Anatomy of a Fall, and the hot pink highlights of Barbie ends tonight, when the 2024 Oscar winners turn major contenders' blue-sky dreams into gold at the 96th Academy Awards.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 10 Mar. 2024
Verb
Under an avalanche of publicity, students of art, design and social history crowded into the galleries with the limousine society crowd, busloads of tourists and classes of chattering children.
—Robert D. McFadden, New York Times, 1 Mar. 2024
Baboons will sometimes chatter at the moon, or at the sun at dawn.
—Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 12 Feb. 2024
Now Ford’s binoculars came to rest on Tobin Rote, Bobby Layne’s backup, who was firing warm-up passes, grinning, chattering with coaches.
—Bill Morris, Detroit Free Press, 28 Jan. 2024
Song-tae Kim and 17 of his friends from church chattered boisterously, some fueled by soju, with the remnants of their dinner — black bean noodles and spicy seafood noodle soup — spread out in front of them.
—Ashley Ahn, Los Angeles Times, 26 Jan. 2024
The camera often focuses on her face as the adults chatter around her; this is the way of children, sometimes absorbing and struggling with the stuff grownups are saying and other times just ignoring it, taking the world in at their own pace.
—Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 26 Jan. 2024
As its title suggests, the piece requires two pianos, between which Poulenc creates a playful, chattering dialogue.
—Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 1 Feb. 2024
My jaw clenched, my breath quickened, my teeth chattered.
—Deborah Vankin, Los Angeles Times, 4 Jan. 2024
There was a crackle of energy from the presence of chattering bodies in a room and the warm cacophony of string musicians tuning instruments.
—Carolina A. Miranda, Los Angeles Times, 26 Dec. 2023
Noun
The new updates come after Skydance reportedly made a takeover offer for National Amusements earlier this year amid widespread deal chatter swirling around Paramount and its parent company.
—Georg Szalai, The Hollywood Reporter, 3 Apr. 2024
Editorial discussions about John Travolta, Lisa Marie Presley and Bill Cosby were now interspersed with chatter about Hillary Clinton, Ted Cruz and Marco Rubio.
—Lachlan Cartwright, New York Times, 3 Apr. 2024
There's also the constant chatter about regulating Big Tech, including numerous testy hearings over the past few years, but still no legislation.
—USA TODAY, 2 Apr. 2024
Continued chatter surrounding a consumption upgrade with appliances and autos the focus.
—Brendan Ahern, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
The Princess’s cancer announcement fell over the chatter of the past few weeks like a bucket of cold water.
—Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 27 Mar. 2024
At certain points, the recordings pick up clacks on the floorboards, tapes winding, studio chatter.
—Leah Lu, Rolling Stone, 25 Mar. 2024
Many have asked: Why not just end the chatter by releasing a short video explanation or a statement squaring some of the recent issues?
—Alexander Smith, NBC News, 19 Mar. 2024
Awards season chatter about the dark stylings of Oppenheimer, snow-white chill of Anatomy of a Fall, and the hot pink highlights of Barbie ends tonight, when the 2024 Oscar winners turn major contenders' blue-sky dreams into gold at the 96th Academy Awards.
—Joey Nolfi, EW.com, 10 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'chatter.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English chatteren, of imitative origin
First Known Use
Verb
13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1
Noun
13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Time Traveler
The first known use of chatter was
in the 13th century
Phrases Containing chatter
Articles Related to chatter
Dictionary Entries Near chatter
Cite this Entry
“Chatter.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/chatter. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy Citation
Kids Definition
chatter
verb
chat·ter
ˈchat-ər
1
: to utter rapid meaningless sounds suggesting speech
squirrels chattered angrily
2
: to talk idly, continually, or rapidly
3
: to click again and again without control
teeth chattering
chatter
noun
chatterer
noun
ˈchat-ər-ər
chattery
adjective
-ə-rē
More from Merriam-Webster on chatter
Nglish: Translation of chatter for Spanish Speakers
Britannica English: Translation of chatter for Arabic Speakers
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