I. ˈmərmər, ˈmə̄mə(r, ˈməimə(r noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle English murmure, from Middle French, from Latin murmur murmur, grumbling, roar; akin to Old High German murmurōn, murmulōn to murmur, Old Norse murra to murmur, Greek mormyrein to roar and boil (of water), Sanskrit marmara murmuring, rustling; of imitative origin
1. : a complaint half suppressed or uttered in a low muttering voice : grumbling
the tax on chimneys … raised far louder murmurs — T.B.Macaulay
devices … which writers use confidently and readers accept without a murmur — Robert Humphrey
a murmur of impatience in the crowd — G.B.Shaw
2.
a. : a low indistinct but often continuous sound
the murmur of voices in the street — Sherwood Anderson
the murmur of the waves along the shore
b. : a soft-spoken word : gentle speech
her murmur was a comforting word
there was a murmur , “Yes, Yes” — Millen Brand
amid a murmur of salaams we seated ourselves — William Beebe
3. : rumor , whisper
was fresh in murmur … that he did seek the love of fair Olivia — Shakespeare
4. : an abnormal sound of the heart heard through the chest wall indicating a functional abnormality or the site of a structural abnormality
5. also murmur vowel : the unstressed voiced or voiceless vowel ə when morphemically incidental to the articulation of a consonant
II. verb
( murmured ; murmured ; murmuring -m(ə)riŋ ; murmurs )
Etymology: Middle English murmuren, from Middle French murmurer, from Latin murmurare, from murmur
intransitive verb
1. : to make a low continuous sound
the brook murmured under the ice — Elliott Merrick
a breeze murmured in the trees — Wilfrid Campfield
2. : to utter complaints in a low half-articulated voice : express discontent : grumble
no one dares murmur in public — Time
the ignorant and ungrateful nation murmured against its deliverers — T.B.Macaulay
transitive verb
1.
a. Scotland : to murmur against : accuse
b. : to utter with dissatisfaction : complain
critics … murmur today that it lacks a forward looking concept — M.W.Straight
2. : to utter or give forth in low or indistinct sounds or words
the sentences men murmur again and again for years — W.B.Yeats
she would be murmuring into the telephone important secrets — Elizabeth Headley