chirps 1 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of chirp
as in chirrups
to make a short sharp sound like a small bird the sparrows were chirping up a storm in the backyard

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

chirps

2 of 2

noun

plural of chirp
as in squawks

Related Words

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of chirps
Verb
Yurov laughs hysterically and chirps back at Kreider. — Michael Russo, New York Times, 8 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chirps
  1. peeps
  2. clucks
  3. tweets
  4. cackles
  5. trills
  6. barks
  7. pipes
  8. grunts
Verb
  • In one painting, Jerry’s head peeps through a rip in the paper ceiling above his father, who sits in an easy chair below; in another, old Jerry sits at the kitchen table talking to his young mother, easily half his age.
    — Chris Ware, The New York Review of Books, 12 Aug. 2026
Definition of peeps
Noun
  • With a few hoots and hollers, and even a couple clucks, the group took off on their ascent to the Betty Bear Hut.
    — Tiney Ricciardi, Denver Post, 30 July 2026
  • Hens make a combination of clucks and yelps when calling to a gobbler.
    — Bruce Brady, Outdoor Life, 8 Apr. 2026
Definition of clucks
Verb
  • French Prime Minister Sebastien Lecornu tweets that five passengers from the country were evacuated from the ship and one of them exhibited symptoms after boarding the evacuation flight.
    — Mary Whitfill Roeloffs, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026
  • PooCrave sprung to life five years later, and with its PopCrave-esque logo tweets out PopCrave-esque announcements that are patently false.
    — Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 30 Apr. 2026
Definition of tweets
Noun
  • Janney also compiles plenty of cackles as Polly’s newly sober sister, Silda.
    — Thomas Floyd, Washington Post, 23 Oct. 2026
  • The doc is similarly unflinching in showing the horrific scene from 1900 in which Donald Sutherland’s sadistic fascist murders a young boy in a shockingly callous way, while Laura Betti as his equal in cruelty dissolves into blood-curdling cackles.
    — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of cackles
Verb
  • Maine coons have become popular for their playful, sociable reputation, distinctive chirps and trills and their deep roots in New England history.
    — Pat Mueller, USA Today, 14 Aug. 2026
  • Zipf’s law states that a handful of words—or, in this case, chirps, whistles and trills—occur frequently, while most are rare.
    — Cody Cottier, Scientific American, 7 Aug. 2026
Definition of trills
Noun
  • On his way out, Council obliged Stokes’ request and let out a few barks of his own.
    — Gary Bedore, Kansas City Star, 15 Oct. 2026
  • In the other, barking fell from 317 barks per hour to 53, an 83% reduction.
    — Kurt Knutsson, FOXNews.com, 22 Sep. 2026
Definition of barks
Verb
  • Available CabinWatch lets parents see rear passengers on the dashboard screen, while CabinTalk pipes the driver’s voice through rear speakers or connected headphones.
    — Chris Hardesty, AJC.com, 9 Oct. 2026
  • The Florida Keys Aqueduct Authority, which pipes fresh water from the mainland throughout the Keys, said in a statement that the break happened on Conch Key, which is about 14 miles north of the Middle Keys city of Marathon.
    — David Goodhue, Miami Herald, 30 June 2026
Definition of pipes
Noun
  • The moose kicks and grunts at first, then settles, allowing the deputy to keep working.
    — Moná Thomas, PEOPLE, 21 Oct. 2026
  • Ranging from the sound of emergency sirens and birds screeching to low grunts and guttural hoots, their vocalizations reverberate from a sanctuary in the hot, dry hills of the Santa Clarita Valley, north of Los Angeles.
    — Jaimie Ding, Fortune, 23 Aug. 2026
Definition of grunts

Browse Nearby Words

chirping
chirps
chirpy
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Chirps.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chirps. Accessed 4 Nov. 2026.

Copy Citation
Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences

More from Merriam-Webster

Word of the Day

Listen to the pronunciation of fulsome

See Definitions and Examples »

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Merriam-Webster’s Great Big List of Words You Love to Hate

'Affect' vs. 'Effect'

'A' or 'an'? What about before 'h'? An Indefinite Article Guide

Why is '-ed' sometimes pronounced at the end of a word?
See More

Popular in Wordplay

See More

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

7 Words for Old-Timey Vehicles

Ten More Words from Taylor Swift Songs

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

How to Use 'Who' vs. 'Whom'

Great Big List of Beautiful and Useless Words, Vol. 5

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't
See More

Games & Quizzes

See All
Play Quordle: Guess all four words in a limited number of tries. Each of your guesses must be a real 5-letter word.
Quordle Can you solve 4 words at once?
Play Blossom: Solve today's spelling word game by finding as many words as you can using just 7 letters. Longer words score more points.
Blossom Pick the best words!
Play Missing Letter: a crossword with a twist. Each of the 25 puzzle words start with a different letter of the alphabet. Which letter is missing?
The Missing Letter A daily crossword with a twist
couple-laugh-cafe
Quiz: Foreign Phrases You Should Know Check out your bona fides and avoid any faux pas.
See All