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
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
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
-
Other rewards can be chatting with a friend while folding laundry or going to a unique grocery store to make shopping more enticing, experts said.—
Kristen Rogers,
CNN,
27 Jan. 2025
-
In the clip, Lamar paces around a greyscale football field, idly chatting on the phone with a friend.—
Ryan Coleman,
EW.com,
26 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
Carolina arrived and started chattering at you in Spanish.—
Kristen Baldwin,
EW.com,
28 Jan. 2025
-
All of that has led to chatter about Kelce’s possible retirement following the season.—
Pete Grathoff,
Kansas City Star,
22 Jan. 2025
Noun
-
All Trump has really done for them is shout nonsense about water.—
Sammy Roth,
Los Angeles Times,
4 Feb. 2025
-
Contorting morality and diversity to justify a stifling enhancement ordinance is woke nonsense.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
That is a location that president and candidate Trump talked quite a lot about, specifically as an example of immigration run amuck.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
26 Jan. 2025
-
Before trying any supplement, talk with a healthcare provider.—
Lindsay Curtis,
Health,
26 Jan. 2025
Verb
-
As infants, pygmy marmosets babble the way human babies do, both to get their parents’ attention and to learn the group dialect.—
Jessica Camille Aguirre,
Smithsonian Magazine,
6 Jan. 2025
-
This stunning 215-foot-tall limestone arch was carved over many years by babbling Cedar Creek.—
Erin Gifford,
Southern Living,
26 Oct. 2024
Verb
-
And there’s Jacinda, the anxious, workaholic partner and mother, whose self-doubt often gets the best of her behind closed doors (at which point Gayford becomes a character too, conversing with her from behind the camera).—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
27 Jan. 2025
-
The investigation revealed the two conversed over social media, and the juvenile was taken to Beard's residence, according to police.—
NWA Democrat-Gazette,
arkansasonline.com,
24 Jan. 2025
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 9 Feb. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share