clatter

[ klat-er ]

verb (used without object)

1. to make a loud, rattling sound, as that produced by hard objects striking rapidly one against the other:

   The shutters clattered in the wind.

2. to move rapidly with such a sound:

   The iron-wheeled cart clattered down the street.

3. to talk fast and noisily; chatter:

   They clattered on and on about their children.

verb (used with object)

1. to cause to clatter:

   clattering the pots and pans in the sink.

noun

1. a rattling noise or series of rattling noises:

   The stagecoach made a terrible clatter going over the wooden bridge.

2. noisy disturbance; din; racket.
3. noisy talk; din of voices:

   They had to shout over the clatter at the cocktail party.

4. idle talk; gossip.

clatter

/ ˈklætə /

verb

1. to make or cause to make a rattling noise, esp as a result of movement
2. intr to chatter

noun

1. a rattling sound or noise
2. a noisy commotion, such as one caused by loud chatter

Derived Forms

• ˈclatteringly, adverb
• ˈclattery, adjective
• ˈclatterer, noun

Other Words From

• clatter·er noun
• clatter·ing·ly adverb
• clatter·y adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of clatter¹

before 1050; Middle English clateren, Old English clatr- (in clatrunge ); cognate with Dutch klateren to rattle; -er ⁶

Word History and Origins

Origin of clatter¹

Old English clatrung clattering (gerund); related to Dutch klateren to rattle, German klatschen to smack, Norwegian klattra to knock

Example Sentences

From there things just keep happening, as one event unfolds into another in a headlong rush amid the incessant clatter of plates and pans and the machine spitting out endless order tickets.

From Los Angeles Times

A tattooed skateboarder clattered over sidewalks, and a man sat on a bench in the shade, reading the Bible and taking notes near the opera house where the musical “Oklahoma” was playing.

From Los Angeles Times

Excavators clawed at the remnants of Iron Gate Dam, clattering loudly as they unloaded tons of earth and rock into dump trucks.

From Los Angeles Times

In an ordinary industrial building off a busy Orange County street, a Seussian contraption, nearly 100 feet long, clattered to life.

From New York Times

She restricts England to just a single from her first five deliveries, but her sixth is clattered through the covers for four.

From BBC

Related Words

• clack