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Added 9 October 2026

babble

/ˈbæb.(ə)l/ noun

In Latin: blaterō Wiktionary

noun Definition from WordNet 3.1, Princeton University. Pronunciation from Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org. More about babble at Wordnik → Where our words come from →

Gibberish resembling the sounds of a baby.

verb

Utter meaningless sounds, like a baby, or utter in an incoherent way.
The old man is only babbling--don't pay attention
To talk foolishly.
The two women babbled and crooned at the baby
Flow in an irregular current with a bubbling noise.
babbling brooks

Origin

From Middle English babelen, from Old English *bæblian, also wæflian (“to talk foolishly”), from Proto-West Germanic *bablōn, *wablōn, variants of *babalōn, from Proto-Germanic *babalōną (“to chatter”), from Proto-Indo-European *bʰa-bʰa-, perhaps a reduplication of Proto-Indo-European *bʰeh₂- (“to say”), or a variant of Proto-Indo-European *baba- (“to talk vaguely, mumble”), or a merger of the two, possibly ultimately onomatopoeic/mimicry of infantile sounds (compare babe, baby).

From Wiktionary, via Kaikki.org (CC BY-SA)

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