Meaning & use
rumble
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Meanings
verbintransitive
To make a deep, heavy sound that goes on for some time, like thunder or a large vehicle.
Grammar: No object; often followed by a direction word: a truck rumbled past.
Patterns
- rumble past
- rumble along
- rumble on
Thunder rumbled in the distance as the storm approached.
A heavy truck rumbled over the old bridge.
My stomach began to rumble during the long meeting.
nouncountable
A low, heavy, continuous sound.
Grammar: Usually singular with a: a rumble of thunder.
Patterns
- a rumble of something
We heard the rumble of a train in the tunnel.
A low rumble came from the volcano.
The rumble of the engine soothed the baby to sleep.
nouncountableinformalold-fashioned
A street fight, especially between rival groups.
Grammar: Slang, mostly American or old film language.
The film opens with a rumble between two gangs.
Police broke up a rumble outside the dance hall.
verbtransitiveinformalBritish
To discover that someone is doing something secret or dishonest.
Grammar: British informal, usually in the passive or with an object: they rumbled him.
Patterns
- rumble someone
- rumble something
The teacher rumbled their plan to skip the lesson.
He thought no one knew, but his boss soon rumbled him.
Word forms
| third person singular | rumbles |
|---|---|
| past tense | rumbled |
| past participle | rumbled |
| -ing form | rumbling |
| plural | rumbles |
Common combinations
- thunder rumbled
- Thunder rumbled across the valley.
- rumble past
- Lorries rumbled past all night.
- distant rumble
- A distant rumble announced the storm.
- low rumble
- The cat gave a low rumble of contentment.
- stomach rumbles
- My stomach rumbled loudly in the silent room.
- rumble on
- The argument rumbled on for years.
Synonyms and how they differ
- roar
- Roar is louder and more violent, while rumble is lower and steadier.
- boom
- Boom is a sudden loud sound, while rumble goes on for longer and is deeper.
- growl
- Growl is a harsh sound like that of an animal, while rumble is smoother and heavier.
- thunder
- Thunder is louder and used for strong impact, while rumble suggests something more distant or lower.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: rumble or tumble? rumble or grumble?
rumble vs tumble
Tumble means to fall or roll awkwardly; rumble means to make a low, heavy sound.
rumble vs grumble
Grumble means to complain quietly; rumble is a deep sound, not words.
Practice
Dark clouds gathered and thunder began to ____ across the hills.
Choose one answer.
Rumble is the deep continuous sound thunder makes. Grumble means to complain, which looks similar but does not describe sound from the sky.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “rumble”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.