mur|mur

mur|mur «MUR muhr», noun, verb.

–n.

1. a soft, low, indistinct sound that rises and falls a little and goes on without breaks: »

the murmur of a stream, the murmur of little waves, the murmur of voices in another room. Faint murmurs from the meadows come (Tennyson).

SYNONYM(S): hum, babble.

2. a sound in the heart or lungs, especially an abnormal sound caused by a leaky valve in the heart.

3. a softly spoken word or speech: »

a murmur of thanks. The visitor made a grateful little murmur of acquiescence (Hawthorne).

4. a complaint made under the breath, not aloud: »

In the City of London, lately so turbulent, scarcely a murmur was heard (Macaulay).

5. Archaic. a rumor: »

There was a murmur…that he possesses other sciences, now lost to the world (Scott).

–v.i.

1. to make a soft, low, indistinct sound.

2. to speak softly and indistinctly: »

We saw the lights and heard The voices murmuring (Tennyson).

3. to complain under the breath; grumble: »

Many were murmuring against the leader they had chosen, and wished to depose him (Francis Parkman).

–v.t.

to utter in a murmur: »

The shy girl murmured her thanks. The angry boy murmured a threat.

╂[< Old French murmure, learned borrowing from Latin murmur, -uris; probably imitative]

–mur´mur|er, noun.

Synonym Study intransitive verb.2 transitive verb.Murmur, mumble, mutter mean to speak indistinctly. Murmur means to speak too softly to be clearly heard or plainly understood: »

The children murmured as they memorized the poem.

Mumble means to speak with the lips partly closed, so that the sounds are not properly formed, either habitually or from embarrassment: »

She mumbled an apology.

Mutter means to mumble in a low voice, as if not wanting to be heard, and especially suggests complaining or anger: »

He muttered some rude remarks.