different between whimper vs murmur

English

Etymology

From dialectal whimp (“to whine”) +? -er (frequentative suffix). Compare German wimmern (“to whimper, whine”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /?w?mp?(?)/, /???mp?(?)/
• Rhymes: -?mp?(?)

Noun

whimper (plural whimpers)

1. A low intermittent sob.

Translations

Verb

whimper (third-person singular simple present whimpers, present participle whimpering, simple past and past participle whimpered)

1. To cry or sob softly and intermittently.

   The lonely puppy began to whimper as soon as we left the room.

   • 1886, Robert Louis Stevenson, Strange Case Of Dr Jekyll And Mr Hyde

     At the sight of Mr. Utterson, the housemaid broke into hysterical whimpering; and the cook, crying out "Bless God! it's Mr. Utterson," ran forward as if to take him in her arms.

2. To cry with a low, whining, broken voice; to whine; to complain.
   • March 22 1549, Hugh Latimer, third sermon preached before King Edward VI

     Was there ever yet preacher but there were gainsayers that spurned, that winced, that whimpered against him?

3. To say something in a whimpering manner.

   "Master, please don't punish me!" he whimpered.

Synonyms

• See also Thesaurus:weep

Derived terms

• whimperative

Translations

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): /?m??.m?(?)/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?m?.m?/
• Rhymes: -??(?)m?(?)

Noun

murmur (countable and uncountable, plural murmurs)

1. (countable, uncountable) Any low, indistinct sound, like that of running water.
2. (countable, uncountable) Soft indistinct speech.

   A murmur arose from the audience.

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

     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, Jeeves in the Offing, chapter XI:

     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.

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

     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.

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. [from 14th c.]
   • 1526, William Tyndale, trans. Bible, John 6:41:

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

2. (intransitive) To speak or make low, indistinguishable noise; to mumble, mutter. [from 14th c.]
3. (transitive) To say (something) indistinctly, to mutter. [from 15th c.]
   • c. 1597, William Shakespeare, Henry IV, Part 1, Act II, Scene 3, line 51,^[1]

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

   • 1874, Thomas Hardy, Far from the Madding Crowd, Chapter 21,^[2]

     Gabriel murmured a confused reply, and hastened on.

   • 1942, Lloyd C. Douglas, The Robe, Chapter 7,^[3]

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

   • 1978, Andrew Holleran, Dancer from the Dance, New York: New American Library, 1986, Chapter 4, p. 105,^[4]

     “ […] 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.
• “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 ????? (marmara, “rustling sound, murmur”), Ancient Greek ??????? (mormúr?, “to roar, boil”), Lithuanian mùrm?ti (“to mutter, murmur, babble”), Old High German murmur?n, murmul?n (“to mumble, murmur”), Old Norse murra (“to grumble, mumble”), Old Armenian ?????? (m?m?am).

Pronunciation

• (Classical) IPA^(key): /?mur.mur/, [?m?rm?r]
• (Ecclesiastical) IPA^(key): /?mur.mur/, [?murmur]

Noun

murmur n (genitive murmuris); third declension

1. murmur, murmuring
2. humming, roaring, growling, grumbling
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): /?murmur/

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): [?murmur]

Verb

murmur

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