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Synonyms

rumbling

American  
[ruhm-bling] / ˈrʌm blɪŋ /

noun

  1. Often rumblings. the first signs of dissatisfaction or grievance.

  2. rumble.

Etymology

Origin of rumbling

Middle English word dating back to 1350–1400; see origin at rumble, -ing 1

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

That rumbling you hear could also just be suitcases rolled over ancient streets.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 17, 2026

Thousands of metres beneath the ground, amid suffocating heat, lies one of the keys to Poland's rumbling mining sector -- and the world economy.

From Barron's • Apr. 3, 2026

There was a deep rumbling as a sheet of brilliant white flame suddenly erupted, momentarily engulfing the whole launch pad as the mightiest rocket Nasa has ever built rose into the sky.

From BBC • Apr. 1, 2026

Lee had hoped the ADM plant, with its towering silos and trains rumbling in and out of town, would be her last stop.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 27, 2025

I crack up as she plays another few riffs—trilling treble to rumbling bass.

From "Blended" by Sharon M. Draper

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.