prattle 1 of 2

noun

Definition of prattlenext
as in babble
unintelligible or meaningless talk parents often claim to understand the prattle of their infant offspring

Synonyms & Similar Words

Relevance

prattle

2 of 2

verb

ˈpra-tᵊl How to pronounce prattle (audio)
1
as in to chat
to engage in casual or rambling conversation spent an hour on the phone prattling on about nothing in particular

Synonyms & Similar Words
2
as in to chatter
to speak rapidly, inarticulately, and usually unintelligibly stop prattling and calmly tell us the news

Synonyms & Similar Words

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 prattle
Noun
The Korean Football Association was furious, responding to this juvenile, but ultimately harmless, prattle by boycotting the Korean press. — E. Tammy Kim, New Yorker, 24 June 2026 Some of the prattle can feel like treading water, a delaying tactic until the inevitable confrontation scene. — Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 17 Apr. 2026
Verb
The father, Man, prattles on about mowing the lawn, painting the fence, and managing their orchard’s irrigation, while the son periodically falls off his chair from boredom. — Literary Hub, 12 Dec. 2025 One half of a pair of young twins prattles on incessantly about some sci-fi arcana while the boy’s bored-looking mother and his quieter brother tune him out. — David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 23 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for prattle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prattle
  1. babble
  2. chat
  3. chatter
  4. nonsense
  5. talk
  6. gabble
  7. jabber
  8. converse
Noun
  • Companies modelled after Mary Kay that have reprised empowerment babble for their founders’ gain are mentioned but receive scarce judgment.
    — Lauren Michele Jackson, New Yorker, 15 July 2026
  • The film almost completely drops any and all scientific babble from the book in favor of character development, action sequences, and emotional gut punches.
    — Matthew Razak, Space.com, 23 Mar. 2026
Definition of babble
Verb
  • He was seen last season trying to chat with a teammate on the sideline during the national anthem.
    — Armando Salguero OutKick, FOXNews.com, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Browsing Twitch live streams on a Sunday afternoon this past summer might include seeing e-gamers setting a world-record speed run or online celebrities chatting with fans.
    — Camila Pedrosa, Sacbee.com, 28 Sep. 2026
Definition of chat
Verb
  • As the courtroom cleared, a jumble of spectators and journalists chattered about the whiplash.
    — Nicki Brown, CNN Money, 6 Sep. 2026
  • There was something that got a lot of people chattering in the world of math.
    — Quanta Magazine, Quanta Magazine, 20 Aug. 2026
Definition of chatter
Noun
  • Same goes for Chock Chapple (6), because life’s too short to be typing that nonsense in a search field.
    — Anthony Crupi, Sportico.com, 30 Sep. 2026
  • What Trump is serving up is precisely the kind of paternalistic nonsense that women have fought against for the past century, now applied to nation states.
    — Rachel Marsden, Hartford Courant, 25 Sep. 2026
Definition of nonsense
Verb
  • Instead of the live stream being cut, or at the very least muted between players talking to reporters, KCRA's rolled on, and two female reporters in attendance were caught making quite the admissions about LaVine and Simmons.
    — Mark Harris OutKick, FOXNews.com, 29 Sep. 2026
  • Following the operation, Dasha will be on complete vocal rest — absolutely no talking allowed — for two weeks, then will begin vocal rehab to learn how to talk and sing properly a few weeks later.
    — Melinda Newman, Billboard, 29 Sep. 2026
Definition of talk
Verb
  • Perennially delighted and deeply uncool, Tascioni gabbles about the wonders of the city while her interlocutors roll their eyes at her lack of sophistication and taste.
    — Lili Loofbourow, Washington Post, 29 Feb. 2024
Definition of gabble
Noun
  • Some children clustered there to jabber and run madly about, while others just wanted attention and knew how to get it.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Oct. 2025
  • And given that these are not professional actors, or even (in most cases) people who aspire to be, LaBeouf’s words to them, full of deadly serious jabber about empathy and ego, are pumped up with an intensity that feels overdone and inappropriate.
    — Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 19 May 2025
Definition of jabber
Verb
  • Essential California checked out the trials, tested airport counters, walked through the terminal’s new gates and conversed with excited passengers looking forward to their next flight out of Burbank.
    — Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 26 Sep. 2026
  • Green was more upbeat after conversing with Young throughout the day.
    — Abbey Mastracco, New York Daily News, 18 Sep. 2026
Definition of converse

Browse Nearby Words

prats
prattle
prattled
See all Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Prattle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prattle. Accessed 4 Oct. 2026.

Copy Citation
Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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

Popular in Grammar & Usage

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

More Commonly Mispronounced Words

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

'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

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List

9 Words That Sound Like Insults But Aren't

The Words of the Week - Oct. 2

12 Lovely and Unusual Words for the Natural World
See More

Popular

See More

Do You Need a New Language Peeve?

7 Great Ways to Say 'Great'

The Longest Long Words List
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
name tags
Words Named After People Quiz Find out who’s behind "leotard," "morphine," an...
See All