prattle

American  

[prat-l] / ˈpræt l /

verb (used without object)

prattled, prattling

1. to talk in a foolish or simple-minded way; chatter; babble.

   Synonyms:

   blab, gabble, jabber, gab

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verb (used with object)

prattled, prattling

1. to utter by chattering or babbling.

noun

1. the act of prattling.

2. chatter; babble.

   the prattle of children.

3. a babbling sound.

   the prattle of water rushing over stones.

prattle British  

/ ˈprætəl /

verb

1. (intr) to talk in a foolish or childish way; babble

2. (tr) to utter in a foolish or childish way

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noun

1. foolish or childish talk

Other Word Forms

• prattler noun
• prattlingly adverb

Etymology

Origin of prattle

1525–35; < Middle Low German pratelen to chatter, frequentative of praten to prate; -le

Example Sentences

Sick, awesome, amazing, I continued to prattle on.

From Slate • Jun. 22, 2025

I find a similar kind of nonsensical prattle in various corners of our Blue Seattle.

From Seattle Times • Jan. 26, 2024

Without this accuracy and verification, some researchers obfuscate data broker information with prattle that mirrors marketing language.

From Scientific American • Jun. 12, 2023

Lots of people can prattle on about football on TV, but the extreme upper echelon — the polished storytellers entrusted by the networks to call those premier national games — is wafer thin.

From Los Angeles Times • Sep. 9, 2022

People in general prattle ceaselessly about ironies here and ironies there.

From "Innumeracy: Mathematical Illiteracy and Its Consequences" by John Allen Paulos