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Webster 1913 Edition

Rattle

Rat′tle

(răt′t’l)
,
Verb.
I.
[
imp. & p. p.
Rattled
(-t’ld)
;
p. pr. & vb. n.
Rattling
(-tlĭng)
.]
[Akin to D.
ratelen
, G.
rasseln
, AS.
hrætele
a rattle, in
hrætel
wyrt rattlewort; cf. Gr.
κραδαίνειν
to swing, wave. Cf.
Rail
a bird.]
1.
To make a quick succession of sharp, inharmonious noises, as by the collision of hard and not very sonorous bodies shaken together; to clatter.
And the rude hail in
rattling
tempest forms.
Addison.
’T was but the wind,
Or the car
rattling
o'er the stony street.
Byron.
2.
To drive or ride briskly, so as to make a clattering;
as, we
rattled
along for a couple of miles
.
[Colloq.]
3.
To make a clatter with the voice; to talk rapidly and idly; to clatter; – with on or away;
as, she
rattled
on for an hour
.
[Colloq.]

Rat′tle

(răt′t’l)
,
Verb.
T.
1.
To cause to make a rattling or clattering sound;
as, to
rattle
a chain
.
2.
To assail, annoy, or stun with a rattling noise.
Sound but another [drum], and another shall
As loud as thine
rattle
the welkin's ear.
Shakespeare
3.
Hence, to disconcert; to confuse;
as, to
rattle
one's judgment; to
rattle
a player in a game.
[Colloq.]
4.
To scold; to rail at.
L'Estrange.
To rattle off
.
(a)
To tell glibly or noisily;
as,
to rattle off
a story
.
(b)
To rail at; to scold.
“She would sometimes rattle off her servants sharply.”
Arbuthnot.

Rat′tle

,
Noun.
1.
A rapid succession of sharp, clattering sounds;
as, the
rattle
of a drum
.
Prior.
2.
Noisy, rapid talk.
All this ado about the golden age is but an empty
rattle
and frivolous conceit.
Hakewill.
3.
An instrument with which a rattling sound is made; especially, a child's toy that rattles when shaken.
The
rattles
of Isis and the cymbals of Brasilea nearly enough resemble each other.
Sir W. Raleigh.
Pleased with a
rattle
, tickled with a straw.
Pope.
4.
A noisy, senseless talker; a jabberer.
It may seem strange that a man who wrote with so much perspicuity, vivacity, and grace, should have been, whenever he took a part in conversation, an empty, noisy, blundering
rattle
.
Macaulay.
5.
A scolding; a sharp rebuke.
[Obs.]
Heylin.
6.
(Zool.)
Any organ of an animal having a structure adapted to produce a rattling sound.
☞ The rattle of a rattlesnake is composed of the hardened terminal scales, loosened in succession, but not cast off, and so modified in form as to make a series of loose, hollow joints.
7.
The noise in the throat produced by the air in passing through mucus which the lungs are unable to expel; – chiefly observable at the approach of death, when it is called the death rattle. See
Râle
.
To spring a rattle
,
to cause it to sound.
–
Yellow rattle
(Bot.)
,
a yellow-flowered herb (
Rhinanthus Crista-galli
), the ripe seeds of which rattle in the inflated calyx.

Webster 1828 Edition

Rattle

RAT'TLE

, v.i.
1.
To make a quick sharp noise rapidly repeated, by the collision of bodies not very sonorous. When bodies are sonorous, it is called jingling. We say, the wheels rattle over the pavement.
And the rude hail in rattling tempest forms.
He fagoted his notions as they fell, and if they rhym'd and rattl'd, all was well.
2.
To speak eagerly and noisily; to utter words in a clattering manner.
Thus turbulent in rattling tone she spoke.
He rattles it out against popery.

RAT'TLE

, v.t.
1.
To cause to make a rattling sound or a rapid succession of sharp sounds; as, to rattle a chain.
2.
To stun with noise; to drive with sharp sounds rapidly repeated.
Sound but another, and another shall, as loud as thine, rattle the welkin's ear.
3.
To scold; to rail at clamorously; as, to rattle off servants sharply.

RAT'TLE

, n.
1.
A rapid succession of sharp clattering sounds; as the rattle of a drum.
2.
A rapid succession of words sharply uttered; loud rapid talk; clamorous chiding.
3.
An instrument with which a clattering sound is made.
The rattles of Isis and the cymbals of Brasilea nearly enough resemble each other.
The rhymes and rattles of the man or boy.
4.
A plant of the genus Pedicularis, louse-wort.
Yellow rattle, a plant of the genus Rhinanthus.

Definition 2024

rattle

rattle

English

Noun

rattle ‎(plural rattles)

a baby with a rattle (2)
  1. (onomatopoeia) a sound made by loose objects shaking or vibrating against one another.
    I wish they would fix the rattle under my dashboard.
    • Prior
      The rattle of a drum.
  2. A baby's toy designed to make sound when shaken, usually containing loose grains or pellets in a hollow container.
    • Alexander Pope
      Pleased with a rattle, tickled with a straw.
  3. A device that makes a rattling sound such as put on an animal so its location can be heard.
  4. A musical instrument that makes a rattling sound.
    • Sir Walter Raleigh
      The rattles of Isis and the cymbals of Brasilea nearly enough resemble each other.
  5. (dated) Noisy, rapid talk.
    • Hakewill
      All this ado about the golden age is but an empty rattle and frivolous conceit.
  6. (dated) A noisy, senseless talker; a jabberer.
    • Macaulay
      It may seem strange that a man who wrote with so much perspicuity, vivacity, and grace, should have been, whenever he took a part in conversation, an empty, noisy, blundering rattle.
  7. A scolding; a sharp rebuke.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of Heylin to this entry?)
  8. (zoology) Any organ of an animal having a structure adapted to produce a rattling sound.
    The rattle of the rattlesnake is composed of the hardened terminal scales, loosened in succession, but not cast off, and modified in form so as to make a series of loose, hollow joints.
  9. The noise in the throat produced by the air in passing through mucus which the lungs are unable to expel; death rattle.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

rattle ‎(third-person singular simple present rattles, present participle rattling, simple past and past participle rattled)

  1. (transitive, ergative) To create a rattling sound by shaking or striking.
    to rattle a chain
    Rattle the can of cat treats if you need to find Fluffy.
    • 2011 February 5, Michael Kevin Darling, “Tottenham 2 - 1 Bolton”, in BBC:
      It was a deflating end to the drama for the hosts and they appeared ruffled, with Bolton going close to a leveller when Johan Elmander rattled the bar with a header from Matt Taylor's cross.
  2. (transitive, informal) To scare, startle, unsettle, or unnerve.
    • P. G. Wodehouse
      "Tut!" said old Bittlesham. "Tut is right," I agreed. Then the rumminess of the thing struck me. "But if you haven't dropped a parcel over the race," I said, "why are you looking so rattled?"
    • 2014, Richard Rae, "Manchester United humbled by MK Dons after Will Grigg hits double", The Guardian, 26 August 2014:
      That United were rattled, mentally as well as at times physically – legitimately so – was beyond question. Nick Powell clipped a crisp drive a foot over the bar, but otherwise Milton Keynes had the best of the remainder of the first half.
  3. (intransitive) To make a rattling noise; to make noise by or from shaking.
    I wish the dashboard in my car would quit rattling.
  4. (transitive, obsolete) To assail, annoy, or stun with a ratting noise.
    • Shakespeare
      Sound but another [drum], and another shall / As loud as thine rattle the welkin's ear.
  5. (transitive, obsolete) To scold; to rail at.
    (Can we find and add a quotation of L'Estrange to this entry?)
  6. To drive or ride briskly, so as to make a clattering.
    We rattled along for a couple of miles.
  7. To make a clatter with a voice; to talk rapidly and idly; with on or away.
    She rattled on for an hour.

Translations

Derived terms

See also

Anagrams

Etymology

Verb from Middle English, either from Old English (not attested) or Middle Dutch ratelen, ultimately imitative. The noun (c. 1500) is from the verb.

Pronunciation

  • (UK, US) IPA(key): /ˈɹæ.t(ə)l/
  • Rhymes: -ætəl

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