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Glite Dictionary
😒 To complain quietly 🔊 To make a sound 😒 A soft complaint 🌩️ A low sound
grumble

grumble

2 2.7
A long low dull sound like distant thunder
  • noun
  • /ˈɡrʌmbl/
translation icon : ruido sordo
  • ... the low hills of Lokhvitsa, brooding at nightfall, the steep banks of the river Dnieper, the grumble of distant cannonade.
  • a grumble of thunder
  • a low grumble
  • a distant grumble

OK, Yeah, yeah, the the other one with the grumble sounds that sounds the most like a regular car.

Examples

  • You could hear the distant grumble of thunder as the storm approached.

  • You could tell something was wrong from the low grumble that vibrated through the crowded chamber.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • When he started talking again, it was a sort of warning grumble, a retreating storm.

    Fiction book (1991)

  • We woke at midnight to hear a low grumble from Macaulay, the dog.

    Blog text (6)

  • The park is dark and still, but for the faint grumble of traffic beyond the live oaks at the gate.

    Fiction book (1999)

  • A grumble, sound of pacing, scrape of a match, and a faint distant odor of tobacco.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • Pancho walked beside him, listening to the sighing of the wind, the grumble of the surf, waiting for him to explode, snarl, or say something.

    Fiction book (2001)

  • Highs and lows were clearest: the solo turns of flute and oboe, the low grumble of the contrabassoon.

    Blog text (32)

  • The low grumble from the engine indicated that something was wrong with the car.

  • As they waited for the train, a soft grumble could be heard from the tracks.

Synonyms

groan
vsgrumble
233 1.9

A low unhappy sound showing pain, discomfort or dislike

is a neutral dull continuous noise without human emotion
rumbling
vsgrumble
75 3.2

A deep low sound that you can hear for a long time, often from thunder, machines, or your stomach

is a less forceful dull sound often from distant movement
rumble
vsgrumble
29 3.1

A low, continuous sound you can feel

is a quieter dull continuous sound often heard from far away
rolling
vsgrumble
1 3.7

A deep continuous sound like thunder or large bells

is a duller long sound that suggests slow movement or distance
pealing
vsgrumble
1 7.7

A deep long sound like thunder or large bells

is a duller continuous noise rather than a clear ringing sound

Antonyms

silence
660 2.0

A period with no sound or speech

How Loud

roar
142 1.0
rumble
29 3.1
grumble
2 2.7
hum
85 1.0
murmur
36 4.1

Surface Forms

grumble singular
grumbles plural

Etymology

Grumble probably began as a sound word that copies a low, rolling noise, much like the familiar word rumble. So a grumble is a 'low, dull sound', for example the noise of thunder or a far-away train.