warble
1 Americanverb (used without object)
-
to sing or whistle with trills, quavers, or melodic embellishments.
The canary warbled most of the day.
-
to yodel.
-
(of electronic equipment) to produce a continuous sound varying regularly in pitch and frequency.
verb (used with object)
-
to sing (an aria or other selection) with trills, quavers, or melodious turns.
-
to express or celebrate in or as if in song; carol.
noun
-
a warbled song or succession of melodic trills, quavers, etc.
-
the act of warbling.
noun
-
a small, hard tumor on a horse's back, produced by the galling of the saddle.
-
a lump in the skin of an animal's back, containing the larva of a warble fly.
verb
-
to sing (words, songs, etc) with trills, runs, and other embellishments
-
(tr) to utter in a song
-
another word for yodel
noun
noun
-
a small lumpy abscess under the skin of cattle caused by infestation with larvae of the warble fly
-
a hard tumorous lump of tissue on a horse's back, caused by prolonged friction of a saddle
Other Word Forms
- unwarbled adjective
- warbled adjective
Etymology
Origin of warble1
First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English noun werble, warble “a tune,” from Old North French, from Germanic; compare Old High German werbel “something that turns”
Origin of warble2
First recorded in 1575–85; origin uncertain; compare Middle Swedish varbulde “boil”
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
There were singing mediums, who warbled tunes composed by the spirits, and dancing mediums, who moved in a “very eccentric” manner.
From Literature
"None of you should be here," Harry said with an audible warble to his voice.
From BBC
They concern me more than the grim soldiers marching about with weapons or the threat of a warbling air raid siren.
From Literature
Between his deep croak, Hannah’s squeaky warble, and the fact that they were making up words on the fly Coal began to giggle.
From Literature
It warbles as it reaches out one of its long limbs.
From Literature
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
