garrulous
adjective
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Garrulous is a 17th century Latin borrowing that has its origin in garrīre, meaning "to chatter, talk rapidly." That Latin root is probably imitative in origin—that is, it was coined to imitate what it refers to. English has a number of words that are imitative in origin, among them several others that describe ways of talking, such as babble and chatter.
Synonyms
- blabby
- chatty
- conversational
- gabby
- loquacious
- motormouthed
- mouthy
- talkative
- talky
Example Sentences
Salman Rushdie, The Satanic Verses, 1989 To an American reader in 1982, confronted with this garrulous, indefatigably quirky, I'm-just-typing-on-yellow-paper-and-associating-ideas-and-memories prose work of 1936, such a judgment, by a presumably informed person, seems preposterous. Joyce Carol Oates, New York Times Book Review, 3 Oct. 1982 He was not garrulous by any means. On the contrary, there was a fine reserve in his manner toward the entire domestic economy of his life which was all that is comprehended by the popular term, gentlemanly. Theodore Dreiser, Sister Carrie, 1900 He became more garrulous after drinking a couple of beers. a garrulous boy who was in constant trouble for talking out of turn Anna Mundow, WSJ, 26 Aug. 2022 Helping out as fry crew are two friends: Big Charles (Bjorn DuPaty) and the animated and garrulous Isom (Michael Kevin Darnall). Celia Wren, Washington Post, 11 July 2022 The Moon is pairing up with amorous Venus in your garrulous 11th house, bringing your connections front and center. Chicago Tribune, 26 June 2022 Among the middle-class families were a few garrulous groups of men with tattooed arms, roaring genially in dialect and dispatching huge plates of calamari with messy gusto. Maria Shollenbarger, Travel + Leisure, 20 June 2022 Mickelson, usually garrulous, did not talk after his round on Thursday and kept things brief on Friday. Bill Pennington, New York Times, 17 June 2022 As the garrulous toddler turns into a petulant adolescent, Brian’s protectiveness toward Charles, who longs for adventure — Hawaii, glimpsed on the TV, really grabs him — is reasonable, not pathological. Sheri Linden, The Hollywood Reporter, 16 June 2022 Suddenly, all those striving, garrulous leaders of yore, seem a tad… adolescent. Avivah Wittenberg-cox, Forbes, 8 June 2022 As the garrulous John and the blunter Winston, Robinson and Henning make an excellent pair, forced to rely on each other. Jim Higgins, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel, 12 Apr. 2022 See More Word History
borrowed from Latin garrulus, from garrīre "to chatter, talk rapidly" (probably of imitative origin) + -ulus, deverbal suffix denoting inclination or repetitive action (going back to Indo-European -l-, participial suffix) — more at -ous
Note: For possible relation to a proposed Indo-European base *ǵeh2r-, see care entry 1.
circa 1611, in the meaning defined at sense 1
Kids Definition
garrulous
adjective
garrulous
adjective
Synonyms & Similar Words
- talkative
- loquacious
- conversational
- outspoken
- communicative
- vocal
- gabby
- chatty
- mouthy
- talky
- outgoing
- motormouthed
- blabby
- expansive
- voluble
- effusive
- articulate
- demonstrative
- fluent
- glib
- rambling
- gossipy
- verbose
- prolix
- gregarious
- extroverted
- gushing
- free-spoken
- unreserved
- wordy
- well-spoken
- long-winded
- extraverted
- sociable
- tale-telling
- windy
- talebearing
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- taciturn
- laconic
- reticent
- uncommunicative
- quiet
- reserved
- shy
- silent
- closemouthed
- mute
- tight-lipped
- evasive
- secretive
- wordless
- mum
- speechless
- aloof
- introverted
- withdrawn
- unsociable
- tongue-tied
- nonvocal
- inhibited
- indrawn
- retiring
- self-contained
Synonyms & Similar Words
- rambling
- talkative
- verbose
- prolix
- exaggerated
- communicative
- diffuse
- loquacious
- wordy
- circumlocutory
- voluble
- pleonastic
- conversational
- circuitous
- long-winded
- redundant
- logorrheic
- chatty
- gabby
- talky
- windy
- repetitious
- bombastic
- periphrastic
- tautological
- tautologous
- gaseous
- grandiloquent
- gassy
- embroidered
- embellished
- hifalutin
- highfalutin
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
- terse
- pithy
- succinct
- concise
- compact
- brief
- crisp
- short
- sententious
- epigrammatic
- aphoristic
- summary
- laconic
- brusque
- compendious
- abbreviated
- blunt
- condensed
- curt
- abrupt
- abridged
- snippy
- shortened
- brusk
Synonym Chooser
Some common synonyms of garrulous are loquacious, talkative, and voluble. While all these words mean "given to talk or talking," garrulous implies prosy, rambling, or tedious loquacity.
The synonyms loquacious and garrulous are sometimes interchangeable, but loquacious suggests the power of expressing oneself articulately, fluently, or glibly.
While the synonyms talkative and garrulous are close in meaning, talkative may imply a readiness to engage in talk or a disposition to enjoy conversation.
Although the words voluble and garrulous have much in common, voluble suggests a free, easy, and unending loquacity.