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murmur

From Wiktionary, the free dictionary

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See also: Murmur

English

Etymology

From Middle English murmur, murmor, murmour, from Old French murmure (modern French murmure), from Latin murmur (“murmur, humming, muttering, roaring, growling, rushing etc.”).

Pronunciation

Noun

murmur (countable and uncountable, plural murmurs)

  1. (countable, uncountable) Any low, indistinct sound, like that of running water.
    • 1854, Narrative of a Journey Round the Dead Sea, and in the Bible Lands:
      The delightful murmur of water running over pebbles is heard a few yards off
    • 1979: A translation of the Eclogues by Paul Alpers
      The windy murmur of the breeze subsides.
  2. (countable, uncountable) Soft indistinct speech.
    A murmur arose from the audience.
    • 1874, Marcus Clarke, chapter V, in For the Term of His Natural Life:
      In the prison of the 'tween decks reigned a darkness pregnant with murmurs. The sentry at the entrance to the hatchway was supposed to "prevent the prisoners from making a noise," but he put a very liberal interpretation upon the clause, and so long as the prisoners refrained from shouting, yelling, and fighting--eccentricities in which they sometimes indulged--he did not disturb them.
    • 1960, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter XI, in Jeeves in the Offing:
      The moment had come for the honeyed word. I lowered my voice to a confidential murmur, but on her inquiring if I had laryngitis raised it again.
    • 2025 January 30, Cameron Joseph, “Trump goes to war with the federal workforce”, in The Christian Science Monitor:
      [President Trump's firing of of a dozen inspectors general] seems to have violated a law requiring that he provide 30 days’ notice, and set off a rare murmur of dissent from Capitol Hill Republicans.
  3. (cardiology, medicine) The sound made by any condition which produces a noisy, or turbulent, flow of blood through the heart.
  4. A muttered complaint or protest; the expression of dissatisfaction in a low muttering voice; any expression of complaint or discontent.
    • 1919, Boris Sidis, The Source and Aim of Human Progress:
      In fear of disease and in the interest of his health man will be muzzled and masked like a vicious dog, and that without any murmur of complaint.
    • 2004, Euan A. Ashley, Josef Niebauer, Cardiology Explained:
      Since aortic diastolic pressure is higher than pulmonary artery systolic pressure, there is continuous flow into the pulmonary circulation, creating the characteristic continuous ("machinery") murmur, heard best just below the left clavicle.
    • 1960, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter XX, in Jeeves in the Offing:
      Glossop will return from his afternoon off to find the awful majesty of the Law waiting for him, complete with handcuffs. We can hardly expect him to accept an exemplary sentence without a murmur, so his first move will be to establish his innocence by revealing all.

Derived terms

Translations

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Translations to be checked

Verb

murmur (third-person singular simple present murmurs, present participle murmuring, simple past and past participle murmured)

  1. (intransitive, now rare) To grumble; to complain in a low, muttering voice, or express discontent at or against someone or something. [from 14th c.]
  2. (intransitive) To speak or make low, indistinguishable noise; to mumble, mutter. [from 14th c.]
    I couldn't hear the words; he just murmured a lot.
    The bees murmured in the forest. The waves murmured on the shore.
  3. (transitive) To say (something) indistinctly, to mutter. [from 15th c.]

Synonyms

Derived terms

Translations

References

Further reading

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Latin

Middle English

Romanian

Welsh

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