as in babble
unintelligible or meaningless talk
parents often claim to understand the prattle of their infant offspring
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
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
Examples 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
Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 12 Sep. 2022
His memoir is a litany of petty fights, a constant takedown of enemies and a cascade of self-aggrandizing prattle.
—Elizabeth Spiers, Washington Post, 26 Aug. 2022
Will Leitch, Vulture, 19 Apr. 2024
On a recent evening, psychologists, students, and scholars wandered the rooms, sipping wine and prattling about the collection.
—Elizabeth Winkler, The New Yorker, 23 June 2023
See all Example Sentences for prattle 
Noun
The British playwright David Hare, who adapted a Maigret book for the stage, insists that Simenon—being Belgian-born and so an outsider—disdained the usual French prattle about gastronomy, and therefore cared little for the subject.
—Adam Gopnik, The New Yorker, 12 Sep. 2022
His memoir is a litany of petty fights, a constant takedown of enemies and a cascade of self-aggrandizing prattle.
—Elizabeth Spiers, Washington Post, 26 Aug. 2022
Verb
The result is an entirely incoherent crime thriller that features gangsters prattling on about the self and the ego and the soul and then occasionally wandering into an entirely different scene where other gangsters are prattling on about the same thing.
—Will Leitch, Vulture, 19 Apr. 2024
On a recent evening, psychologists, students, and scholars wandered the rooms, sipping wine and prattling about the collection.
—Elizabeth Winkler, The New Yorker, 23 June 2023
See all Example Sentences for prattle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for prattle
Verb
-
At the funeral, her husband and Trump were seated next to each other and chatted and laughed together despite the history of political animosity between them.—
John Mac Ghlionn,
Newsweek,
14 Jan. 2025
-
Barack Obama attended the funeral and sat next to Trump, where a clip of the two smiling and chatting away quickly became viral on social media.—
Sudiksha Kochi,
USA TODAY,
14 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Dozens of schoolmates chattered happily under the pines, kicking a soccer ball on sun-streaked grass, climbing a play structure and scarfing down pizza.—
Teresa Watanabe,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Jan. 2025
-
In addition, the award-winning and emerging writers were asked to include three of eight items in each story: a shovel, the name Sandi, an undertaker, a Minnesota Twins baseball cap, chattering teeth, whistling, smoke and a mousetrap.—
Mary Ann Grossmann,
Twin Cities,
24 Nov. 2024
Noun
-
By contrast, this rising international elite is creating something very different: a society in which superstition defeats reason and logic, transparency vanishes, and the nefarious actions of political leaders are obscured behind a cloud of nonsense and distraction.—
Anne Applebaum,
The Atlantic,
7 Jan. 2025
-
That ain't the show, the show is the nonsense that's happening in between John Wick.—
Kevin Lynn,
Newsweek,
7 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
The ordeal worsened her already severe illness, leaving her virtually unable to eat, move, or talk for days after.—
Jamie Ducharme,
TIME,
14 Jan. 2025
-
During the second quarter, Trump and Brown talked for roughly 20 minutes about football and the situation in the Middle East and Ukraine, a U.S. official told ABC News.—
Matt Seyler,
ABC News,
14 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
This stunning 215-foot-tall limestone arch was carved over many years by babbling Cedar Creek.—
Erin Gifford,
Southern Living,
26 Oct. 2024
-
In the clip, Sidibe can be heard teaching her children how to sing as the twins babble along in their little seats with their names printed on the front.—
Emma Aerin Becker,
People.com,
26 Dec. 2024
Verb
-
Footage of the rescue, shared by the HCSO, shows the moment the rescuers’ boats converged on the buoy and crews conversed with the survivors.—
Abigail Adams,
People.com,
7 Jan. 2025
-
Chesney will often be found helping with the residents’ free time, serving ice cream, and conversing with the residents.—
Gabrielle Chenault,
The Tennessean,
20 Dec. 2024
Noun
-
Worse, such jabber crowds out essential coverage of genuine threats to democracy and the visions of the two parties.—
Jennifer Rubin,
Washington Post,
16 July 2024
-
Jacobs-Jenkins renders him as a wry, friendly figure who occasionally takes over the bodies of the other characters to explain what is happening beneath their jabber.—
Jesse Green,
New York Times,
5 June 2023
Verb
-
In babies and toddlers, the first signs, such as drooling and scratching, may appear mild.—
Laura Dorwart,
Verywell Health,
7 Jan. 2025
-
Public health officials are urging residents who may have fed their pets Monarch raw products or other raw meat or dairy products, and who may have noticed their pet acting peculiar — lethargic, loss of motor control, drooling, etc. — to immediately contact their veterinarian.—
Susanne Rust,
Los Angeles Times,
1 Jan. 2025
Video
A Look at Uncommon Onomatopoeia
Some imitative words are more surprising than others
Thesaurus Entries Near prattle
Cite this Entry
“Prattle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/prattle. Accessed 22 Jan. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share