murmured 1 of 2

adjective

as in muttered

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murmured

2 of 2

verb

past tense of murmur
1
as in complained
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely no prisoner dared murmur out loud

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in mumbled
to speak softly and unclearly a college professor who tends to murmur

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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 murmured
Adjective
No photograph could catch the smell drifting from the nearby military barracks and Indian camps; capture the murmured swirl of French, English, Arapaho, and Lakota; or let a viewer feel the colliding anxieties and expectations that hung heavy over negotiations like this. — Literary Hub, 29 Sep. 2025
Verb
True to form, the Boards of Canada resurrection has murmured to life so quietly that only the most obsessive of code breakers twigged it early on. — Jazz Monroe, Pitchfork, 16 Apr. 2026 Ludwig murmured, the mist outside the window mostly covering the mountain. — Kendra Atleework, Longreads, 12 Mar. 2026 Meyers bent his head and murmured to Bria. — CBS News, 6 Mar. 2026 Deep breathing could be heard; birds chirped loudly outside; spectators murmured on the periphery. — Sarah Larson, New Yorker, 8 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for murmured
  1. muttered
  2. complained
  3. mumbled
  4. whispered
  5. screamed
  6. shouted
  7. moaned
  8. breathed
Adjective
  • Often made by anonymous rappers and producers with a monkish dedication to their craft, this isn’t rap for the live show but for the headphones, music where every muttered word and barely-there snare matters.
    — Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork, 26 June 2026
Definition of muttered
Verb
  • After Benton’s reelection, Welch said, Benton still complained to labor that the speaker should have done more.
    — Rick Pearson, Chicago Tribune, 6 Aug. 2026
  • While networks since the rabbit-ears days have complained about Nielsen’s methods, the company has been in the crosshairs numerous times during the streaming boom as its capabilities have faced scrutiny.
    — Dade Hayes, Deadline, 6 Aug. 2026
Definition of complained
Verb
  • This succession was muddied thanks to the meddling of the King’s Hand, Otto Hightower, and the king’s own mumbled words on his deathbed to his wife, Alicent.
    — Erik Kain, Forbes.com, 20 June 2026
  • Claiborne mumbled his responses to questions.
    — Alec Lewis, New York Times, 29 May 2026
Definition of mumbled
Adjective
  • For many leaders, the phrase conjures up whispered alliances, opportunistic loyalty, self-interested maneuvering and the slow poisoning of organizational culture.
    — Harrison Monarth, Forbes.com, 31 May 2026
Definition of whispered
Verb
  • Rebecca Marodi screamed, before appearing on video with blood on her back, according to the warrant.
    — Summer Lin, Los Angeles Times, 5 Aug. 2026
  • His wife woke up, and the two of them screamed out the window for help.
    — Alexis Okeowo, New Yorker, 3 Aug. 2026
Definition of screamed
Adjective
  • This blend of styles is not only about presenting contrasts—clean versus shouted vocals, melodic versus dissonant riffs, headbanging versus moshing—but also preserving the murky in-between that only elevates the extreme.
    — Sam Sodomsky, Pitchfork, 7 Jan. 2026
Definition of shouted
Verb
  • Coach Arne Slot moaned about VAR but his problems lie much closer to home.
    — Phil Hay, New York Times, 4 May 2026
  • Critics moaned when the CFP committee picked the Hurricanes over Notre Dame as the last Power 4 entry into the playoffs.
    — Chris Hays, The Orlando Sentinel, 13 Jan. 2026
Definition of moaned
Adjective
  • His wraparound, tight-quarters assist on a Keshad Johnson dunk in the second half breathed fire into the lungs of the home crowd.
    — Bryce Miller Columnist, San Diego Union-Tribune, 19 Nov. 2021
Definition of breathed

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murmured
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Cite this Entry

“Murmured.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/murmured. Accessed 9 Aug. 2026.

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More from Merriam-Webster on murmured

Nglish: Translation of murmured for Spanish Speakers

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