murmur
[verb]
Synonyms:
- mumble, mutter, whisper
- grumble, complain, moan (informal)
[noun]
Synonyms:
- drone, buzzing, humming, purr, rumble, whisper

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Related Words: murmuration, buzz, drone, hum, purr, brool

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English Thesaurus: say, state, announce, declare, mention, ...

[TahlilGaran] English Synonym Dictionary ▲

I. mur‧mur¹ /ˈmɜːmə $ ˈmɜːrmər/ verb

1. [intransitive and transitive] to say something in a soft quiet voice that is difficult to hear clearly:
‘Well done,’ murmured George.
The girl murmured something polite, and smiled.
Julie turned over and murmured in her sleep.

2. [intransitive] to make a soft low sound:
The wind murmured through the trees.

3. [intransitive + against] literary especially British English to complain to friends and people you work with, but not officially
—murmuring noun [uncountable and countable]:
murmurings of discontent

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

II. murmur² noun [countable]
[Date: 1300-1400; Language: French; Origin: murmure, from Latin murmur]

1. a soft low sound made by people speaking quietly or a long way away
murmur of
the murmur of voices in the other room
She replied in a low murmur.
murmur of agreement/surprise/regret etc (=one that expresses a particular feeling)
There was a murmur of agreement from the crowd.

2. a complaint, but not a strong or official complaint
murmur of
There have been murmurs of discontent over the new rules.

3. do something without a murmur to do something without complaining, especially when this is surprising:
They signed the form without a murmur.

4. the soft low sound made by water, the wind etc:
the murmur of the little brook

5. heart murmur an unusual sound made by the heart, which shows that there may be something wrong with it

[TahlilGaran] Dictionary of Contemporary English ▲

murmur
noun
I. sound of words that are spoken quietly
ADJ. dull, faint, low, quiet, soft | general a general murmur of assent
angry
VERB + MURMUR give, let out He gave a little murmur of relief.
hear
MURMUR + VERB rise, run A murmur of excitement rose from the audience. A murmur of amusement ran round the room.
PREP. in a ~ She answered in a low murmur.
with a ~ He took the mug of coffee with a murmur of thanks.
without a ~ They did as they were told, without a murmur.
~ of
PHRASES the murmur of voices
 ⇒ Note at SOUND

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

murmur
II. low, gentle, continuous sound
ADJ. soft | low | distant, far-off
VERB + MURMUR hear
PREP. ~ of the distant murmur of traffic

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

murmur
verb
ADV. gently, quietly, softly, under your breath ‘What a fool I've been,’ he murmured softly.
huskily, thickly, throatily | sleepily | shakily | apologetically, appreciatively, politely, soothingly, thoughtfully ‘Mmm, ’ she murmured appreciatively.
drily, ironically, sarcastically, sardonically, silkily, sweetly (ironic), wryly
VERB + MURMUR hear sb She heard him murmur something under his breath.
PREP. to He held her tight and murmured to her.

[TahlilGaran] Collocations Dictionary ▲

say to tell someone something, using words:
‘I really ought to go,’ she said.
Lauren said she’d probably be late.
state to say something, especially in a definite or formal way – used in official contexts:
The witness stated that he had never seen the woman before.
Please state your name and address.
announce to publicly tell people about something:
The chairman announced his resignation.
The results will be announced tomorrow.
We will announce the winners next Sunday.
They were announcing the train times over the loudspeaker system.
declare to say something very firmly:
‘My personal life is none of your business,’ she declared.
mention to talk about someone or something, especially without giving many details:
Did Tom mention anything about what happened at school?
Your name was mentioned!
express to let someone know your feelings by putting them into words:
Young children often find it difficult to express their emotions.
comment to say what your opinion is about someone or something:
The prime minister was asked to comment on the crisis.
note/remark formal to say that you have noticed that something is true – used especially in formal writing:
We have already noted that most old people live alone.
Someone once remarked that the problem with computers is that they only give you answers.
add to say something more, after what has already been said:
He added that he thought it could be done fairly cheaply.
point out to mention something that seems particularly important or relevant:
Dr Graham points out that most children show some signs of abnormal behaviour.
It’s worth pointing out that few people actually die of this disease.
air to talk about your opinions, worries, or the things you disagree about: air your views/grievances/differences:
The programme will give listeners the chance to air their views about immigration.
Workers were able to air their grievances.
voice to talk publicly about your feelings or about whether you approve or disapprove of something formal: voice concern/support/doubt/fears etc:
The president has already voiced his support for the proposal.
She voiced concern for the safety of the hostages.
whisper to say something very quietly, using your breath rather than your full voice:
‘Don’t wake the baby,’ Jenny whispered.
mumble to say something quietly without pronouncing the words clearly:
He mumbled his thanks.
mutter to say something quietly, especially when you are annoyed but do not want someone to hear you complaining:
‘This is ridiculous,’ he muttered under his breath.
She muttered something about having to go home early.
murmur to say something in a soft slow gentle voice:
She stroked his hair and murmured, ‘Don’t worry. You’ll be all right.’
growl to say something in a low angry voice:
‘As I was saying,’ Lewis growled, ‘it needs to be finished today.’
snarl to say something in a nasty angry way:
‘Get out of my way!’ he snarled.
exclaim to say something suddenly and loudly:
‘How beautiful!’ she exclaimed.
blurt out to suddenly say something without thinking, especially something embarrassing or secret:
It was partly nervousness that had made him blurt out the question.
stammer/stutter to speak with a lot of pauses and repeated sounds, because you have a speech problem, or because you are nervous or excited:
‘I’ll, I’ll only be a m-moment,’ he stammered.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

squeak a very short high sound or cry:
I heard the squeak of his shoes on the tiled floor.
Annie gave a squeak of surprise.
creak a long high sound that something makes when someone opens it, walks on it, sits on it etc - used especially about a door, wooden floor, bed, or stairs:
the creak of floorboards
The door opened with a creak.
screech a loud, long, unpleasantly high sound - used especially about someone’s voice, or about brakes, tyres etc:
There was a screech of tyres followed by a bang.
She let out a screech of horror.
beep (also bleep British English) a high electronic sound that a machine sends out, especially in order to attract someone’s attention:
You’ll hear a bleep when the photocopier’s finished printing.
hum a quiet low continuous sound, especially from electrical equipment, traffic, an engine, or people’s conversation:
The only sound was the faint hum of the air-conditioning unit.
He could hear the hum of distant traffic.
rustle a continuous quiet sound from papers, leaves, or clothes when they rub together:
She heard the rustle of dried leaves behind her.
the rustle of silk dresses
murmur a quiet low continuous sound, especially from people’s voices that are far away:
The murmur of voices died away.
They spoke in a low murmur.
rumble a series of long low sounds, especially from big guns, traffic, or thunder:
I heard a rumble of thunder.
the low rumble of a train approaching
splash the sound that a liquid makes when something hits it, or when it hits against another thing:
She jumped into the pool with a big splash.
the splash of the waves against the rocks
gurgle the low sound that water makes when it flows gently over or through something:
the gurgle of a stream
She listened to the gurgle as the water drained out of the bath.
plop the sudden short sound when something is dropped into a liquid:
Kate dropped the ice into her glass with a plop.
hiss a continuous high sound when air or gas comes out of something:
There was a hiss of steam from the coffee machine.
Workers reported hearing a loud hiss moments before the explosion.
bang a short sudden loud noise made by a gun, bomb etc:
There was a loud bang as the bomb exploded.
The firework went off with a bang.
boom a very loud sound from an explosion, which you can hear for several seconds after it begins:
The building exploded into rubble with a loud boom.
The boom of artillery fire echoed in the distance.
roar a continuous very loud noise that gets louder and continues for a long time:
The light was followed by the deafening roar of explosions.
the roar of the ship’s guns
crash a very loud sound caused when something hits something else, especially when damage is caused:
The tray of dishes fell to the floor with a crash.
I heard an enormous crash outside our house, and I went to see what had happened.
thud a quiet low sound made when a heavy object falls down onto surface:
There was a dull thud as the box hit the floor.
His head hit the ground with a sickening thud.
thump a dull loud sound made when a heavy object hits something else:
There was a loud thump as Eddie threw Luther back against the wall.
clink a short ringing sound made when two glass, metal, or china objects hit each other:
the clink of champagne glasses
The clink of cutlery could be heard in the restaurant.
tinkle the pleasant sound that is made by light pieces of glass or metal hitting each other repeatedly:
He listened to the faint tinkle of cow bells in the distance.
jingle the sound of small metal objects being shaken together:
the jingle of her bracelets
the jingle of keys
rattle a short repeated sound made when things hit against each other - used especially when part of something is loose and is hitting against something:
There was a strange rattle coming from the engine.
the rattle of the trolley
appear a more formal word for ‘seem’:
These reports appear to be unfounded.
look to seem to be something, often because of what can be seen:
The future looks bleak.
He looked pleased.
sound used to say that something or someone seems to be something because of what you have heard or read about them, or because of the noise or voice that you hear:
This study sounds very ambitious.
They heard what sounded like a blow.
come across as something to seem to have particular qualities:
He comes across as a very sensitive man.
sound advice
He gave us some sound advice.
sound judgement
He was beginning to rely on her sound judgement.
a sound reason
Both these buyers have sound reasons for their choice.
a sound investment
Property is usually a sound investment.
a sound policy
The problems of industry will only be solved by sound economic policies.
a sound basis
Sometimes friendship is a sound basis for a good marriage.
environmentally/ecologically sound
The government encourages environmentally sound management of the countryside.
ideologically sound (=good, according to a set of beliefs)
It was the ideologically sound thing to do.
scientifically/technically sound
Are these studies scientifically sound?

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

whisper to say something very quietly, using your breath rather than your full voice:
‘Don’t wake the baby,’ Jenny whispered.
mumble to say something quietly without pronouncing the words clearly:
He mumbled his thanks.
mutter to say something quietly, especially when you are annoyed but do not want someone to hear you complaining:
‘This is ridiculous,’ he muttered under his breath.
She muttered something about having to go home early.
murmur to say something in a soft slow gentle voice:
She stroked his hair and murmured, ‘Don’t worry. You’ll be all right.’
growl to say something in a low angry voice:
‘As I was saying,’ Lewis growled, ‘it needs to be finished today.’
snarl to say something in a nasty angry way:
‘Get out of my way!’ he snarled.
exclaim to say something suddenly and loudly:
‘How beautiful!’ she exclaimed.
blurt out to suddenly say something without thinking, especially something embarrassing or secret:
It was partly nervousness that had made him blurt out the question.
stammer/stutter to speak with a lot of pauses and repeated sounds, because you have a speech problem, or because you are nervous or excited:
‘I’ll, I’ll only be a m-moment,’ he stammered.
a hoarse whisper
Her voice came out as a hoarse whisper.
a loud whisper
‘Where are you going?’ I said in a loud whisper.
a low/soft whisper
When he spoke, it was in a low whisper.
a stage whisper (=a loud whisper that you intend everyone to hear)
'What’s going on?' Rory said, in a stage whisper.
a hushed whisper
They spoke in the hushed whispers of churchgoers.
an urgent whisper
‘Daddy!’ he said in an urgent whisper.
a fierce whisper
‘Let me go!’ she said in a fierce whisper.
a conspiratorial whisper (=used when you share a secret with someone)
‘Does she suspect anything?’ said Ruth in a conspiratorial whisper.
speak/talk in whispers
They spoke in quick, urgent whispers.
barely/hardly/scarcely above a whisper (=only a little louder than a whisper)
'Not me', he said, in a voice barely above a whisper.

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲

whisper to say something very quietly, using your breath rather than your full voice:
‘Don’t wake the baby,’ Jenny whispered.
mumble to say something quietly without pronouncing the words clearly:
He mumbled his thanks.
mutter to say something quietly, especially when you are annoyed but do not want someone to hear you complaining:
‘This is ridiculous,’ he muttered under his breath.
She muttered something about having to go home early.
murmur to say something in a soft slow gentle voice:
She stroked his hair and murmured, ‘Don’t worry. You’ll be all right.’
growl to say something in a low angry voice:
‘As I was saying,’ Lewis growled, ‘it needs to be finished today.’
snarl to say something in a nasty angry way:
‘Get out of my way!’ he snarled.
exclaim to say something suddenly and loudly:
‘How beautiful!’ she exclaimed.
blurt out to suddenly say something without thinking, especially something embarrassing or secret:
It was partly nervousness that had made him blurt out the question.
stammer/stutter to speak with a lot of pauses and repeated sounds, because you have a speech problem, or because you are nervous or excited:
‘I’ll, I’ll only be a m-moment,’ he stammered.
hum a quiet low continuous sound, especially from electrical equipment, traffic, an engine, or people’s conversation:
The only sound was the faint hum of the air-conditioning unit.
He could hear the hum of distant traffic.
rustle a continuous quiet sound from papers, leaves, or clothes when they rub together:
She heard the rustle of dried leaves behind her.
the rustle of silk dresses
rumble a series of long low sounds, especially from big guns, traffic, or thunder:
I heard a rumble of thunder.
the low rumble of a train approaching

[TahlilGaran] English Thesaurus ▲