murmur

English

Etymology

From Middle English murmur, murmor, murmour, from Old French murmure (modern French murmure), from Latin murmur (“murmur, humming, muttering, roaring, growling, rushing etc.”).

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /ˈmɜː.mə(ɹ)/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /ˈmɝ.mɚ/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -ɜː(ɹ)mə(ɹ)

Noun

murmur (countable and uncountable, plural murmurs)

1. (countable, uncountable) Any low, indistinct sound, like that of running water.
   • 1854, Narrative of a Journey Round the Dead Sea, and in the Bible Lands:

     The delightful murmur of water running over pebbles is heard a few yards off

   • 1979: A translation of the Eclogues by Paul Alpers

     The windy murmur of the breeze subsides.

2. (countable, uncountable) Soft indistinct speech.

   A murmur arose from the audience.

   • 1874, Marcus Clarke, chapter V, in For the Term of His Natural Life:

     In the prison of the 'tween decks reigned a darkness pregnant with murmurs. The sentry at the entrance to the hatchway was supposed to "prevent the prisoners from making a noise," but he put a very liberal interpretation upon the clause, and so long as the prisoners refrained from shouting, yelling, and fighting--eccentricities in which they sometimes indulged--he did not disturb them.

   • 1960, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter XI, in Jeeves in the Offing:

     The moment had come for the honeyed word. I lowered my voice to a confidential murmur, but on her inquiring if I had laryngitis raised it again.

3. (cardiology, medicine) The sound made by any condition which produces noisy, or turbulent, flow of blood through the heart.
4. A muttered complaint or protest; the expression of dissatisfaction in a low muttering voice; any expression of complaint or discontent.
   • 1919, Boris Sidis, The Source and Aim of Human Progress:

     In fear of disease and in the interest of his health man will be muzzled and masked like a vicious dog, and that without any murmur of complaint.

   • 2004, Euan A. Ashley, Josef Niebauer, Cardiology Explained:

     Since aortic diastolic pressure is higher than pulmonary artery systolic pressure, there is continuous flow into the pulmonary circulation, creating the characteristic continuous ("machinery") murmur, heard best just below the left clavicle.

   • 1960, P. G. Wodehouse, chapter XX, in Jeeves in the Offing:

     Glossop will return from his afternoon off to find the awful majesty of the Law waiting for him, complete with handcuffs. We can hardly expect him to accept an exemplary sentence without a murmur, so his first move will be to establish his innocence by revealing all.

Derived terms

Translations

Verb

murmur (third-person singular simple present murmurs, present participle murmuring, simple past and past participle murmured)

1. (intransitive, now rare) To grumble; to complain in a low, muttering voice, or express discontent at or against someone or something.
   • 1526, [William Tyndale, transl.], The Newe Testamẽt  (Tyndale Bible), [Worms, Germany: Peter Schöffer], →OCLC, John vj:[41]:

     The Iewes then murmured at him because he sayde: I am that breed which is come doune from heaven.

   • 1830, The Book of Mormon:

     And now, behold thy brothers murmur, saying it is a hard thing which I have required of them; but behold I have not required it of them, but it is a commandment of the Lord.

2. (intransitive) To speak or make low, indistinguishable noise; to mumble, mutter.

   I couldn't hear the words; he just murmured a lot.

   The bees murmured in the forest. The waves murmured on the shore.

   • 1922, Ben Travers, chapter 7, in A Cuckoo in the Nest:

     “Oh yes,” he murmured in a tone of obligatory surprise, as he proceeded to make the kind of 2 which he attributed to Margaret's style of chirography.

3. (transitive) To say (something) indistinctly, to mutter.
   • c. 1597 (date written), William Shakespeare, “The First Part of Henry the Fourth, ”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies  (First Folio), London: Isaac Iaggard, and Ed Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, , line 51:

     I […] heard thee murmur tales of iron wars;

   • 1874, Thomas Hardy, chapter 21, in Far from the Madding Crowd. , volumes (please specify |volume=I or II), London: Smith, Elder & Co., , →OCLC:

     Gabriel murmured a confused reply, and hastened on.

   • 1942, Lloyd C. Douglas, chapter 7, in The Robe‎:

     With a husky voice she murmured that he was the very dearest grandfather anyone ever had.

   • 1978, Andrew Holleran, chapter 4, in Dancer from the Dance‎, New York: New American Library, published 1986, page 105:

     “ […] Don’t look now,” he murmured, lowering his eyes demurely, “but the most handsome man in Brookfield, Connecticut, has just walked in the room.”

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:mutter

Derived terms

Translations

References

• “murmur”, in The Century Dictionary , New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “murmur”, in OED Online ⁠, Oxford, Oxfordshire: Oxford University Press, launched 2000.

Further reading

• heart murmur on Wikipedia.Wikipedia

Latin

Etymology

From Proto-Indo-European *mormur-, *mur- (“to mutter”). Reduplication points to imitative, onomatopoeic origin. Cognate with Sanskrit मर्मर (marmara, “rustling sound, murmur”), Ancient Greek μορμύρω (mormúrō, “to roar, boil”), Lithuanian mùrmėti (“to mutter, murmur, babble”), Old High German murmurōn, murmulōn (“to mumble, murmur”), Old Norse murra (“to grumble, mumble”), Old Armenian մռմռամ (mṙmṙam).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /ˈmur.mur/,
• (modern Italianate Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /ˈmur.mur/,

Noun

murmur n (genitive murmuris); third declension

1. murmur, murmuring
2. humming, roaring, rumbling, growling, grumbling
   • 29 BCE – 19 BCE, Virgil, Aeneid 1.55–56:

     Illī indignantēs magnō cum murmure montis
     circum claustra fremunt; .

     Those resenting : With a mighty rumbling of the mountain all around, locked gates they rage.
     (Evocative word-sounds convey fantastical noises caused by trapped winds: the alliteration of repeated “m’s” for menacing rumbling, and onomatopoeia using hard “c’s” to personify angry winds clanging their cages.)

3. rushing, crashing

Declension

Third-declension noun (neuter, imparisyllabic non-i-stem).

Descendants

• English: murmur
• French: murmure
• Irish: monabhar
• Italian: mormorio
• Portuguese: murmúrio
• Spanish: murmullo, murmurio, murmuro

References

• “murmur”, in Charlton T. Lewis and Charles Short (1879) A Latin Dictionary, Oxford: Clarendon Press
• “murmur”, in Charlton T. Lewis (1891) An Elementary Latin Dictionary, New York: Harper & Brothers

Middle English

Alternative forms

• murmure, murmour, murmour, murmor

Etymology

From Old French murmure, from Latin murmur.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmurmur/

Noun

murmur (plural murmurs)

1. A whining, protesting or complaining in the background; murmuring.
2. (rare) Background noise or sounds.

Descendants

• English: murmur

References

• “murmur(e, n.”, in MED Online, Ann Arbor, Mich.: University of Michigan, 2007, retrieved 2018-10-20.

Romanian

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key):

Etymology 1

Verb

murmur

1. first-person singular present indicative/subjunctive of murmura

Etymology 2

Borrowed from Latin murmur or French murmure.

Noun

murmur n (plural murmure)

1. a murmur

Declension