as in chirping
to make a short sharp sound like a small bird
the chittering birds outside were driving the cat crazy the cell phone chittered in his pocket
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of chittering
The ice rocked four or five feet in each direction, and suddenly a group of penguins surfaced beside the kayak and started chittering.
—
Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 May 2026
Harding sings in the hooded, lower end of her range, and the music is filled with nighttime sounds—chittering percussion, organ.
—Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 8 May 2026
The group set out in the park to investigate chittering sounds that turned out to be a couple of white-breasted nut hatches.
—Karl Schneider, IndyStar, 22 Sep. 2025
Jordi Lippe-McGraw, Condé Nast Traveler, 20 May 2026
Harding sings in the hooded, lower end of her range, and the music is filled with nighttime sounds—chittering percussion, organ.
—Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 8 May 2026
The group set out in the park to investigate chittering sounds that turned out to be a couple of white-breasted nut hatches.
—Karl Schneider, IndyStar, 22 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for chittering
chirping
Verb
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Atkinson was chirping at Blair, which Black said was common (for Atkinson to be chirping at anyone), and there was a lot of contact.—
Joe Vardon,
New York Times,
11 May 2026
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I'mPhaedra Trethan, using this handy guide to identify the birds chirping in my yard each morning.—
Phaedra Trethan,
USA Today,
7 May 2026
Cite this Entry
“Chittering.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/chittering. Accessed 5 Jun. 2026.
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