/ ˈgrʌmbl; NAmE / verb , noun
■ verb
1.
grumble (at / to sb) (about / at sb/sth) to complain about sb/sth in a bad-tempered way :
[ v ]
She's always grumbling to me about how badly she's treated at work.
[ v speech ]
'I'll just have to do it myself,' he grumbled.
[ v that ]
They kept grumbling that they were cold.
➡ note at complain
2.
[ v ] to make a deep continuous sound
SYN rumble :
Thunder grumbled in the distance.
► grum·bler / ˈgrʌmblə(r); NAmE / noun
■ noun
1.
~ (about sth) | ~ (that ... ) something that you complain about because you are not satisfied :
My main grumble is about the lack of privacy.
2.
a long low sound
SYN rumble :
a distant grumble of thunder
••
WORD ORIGIN
late 16th cent.: from obsolete grumme (probably of Germanic origin and related to Dutch grommen ) + -le .