verb (used without object)
1.
to utter a low, continuous, murmuring sound expressive of contentment or pleasure, as a cat does.
2.
(of things) to make a sound suggestive of the purring of a cat: The new motor of the car purred.
verb (used with object)
3.
to express by or as if by purring.
noun
4.
the low, vibrating sound made by a cat by the contracting of the laryngeal muscles and the diaphragm as it breathes.
5.
a sound resembling this.
6.
the act of purring.
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2013.
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Link To purr
00:10
Purr
is one of our favorite verbs.
So is subtilize. Does it mean:
| to run away hurriedly; flee. |
| to introduce subtleties into or argue subtly about. |
Collins
World English Dictionary
purr (pɜː) ![[Click for IPA pronunciation guide]](http://static.sfdict.com/dictstatic/g/d/dictionary_questionbutton_default.gif) | |
| —vb | |
| 1. | (intr) (esp of cats) to make a low vibrant sound, usually considered as expressing pleasure, etc |
| 2. | (tr) to express (pleasure, etc) by this sound |
| —n | |
| 3. | a purring sound |
| [C17: of imitative origin; compare French ronronner to purr, German schnurren, Dutch snorren] | |
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 10th Edition
2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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2009 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins
Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009
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Etymonline
Word Origin & History
purr
c.1600, of imitative origin.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper
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Slang Dictionary
purr (like a cat) definition
|
Dictionary of American Slang and Colloquial Expressions by Richard A. Spears.Fourth Edition.
Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Copyright 2007. Published by McGraw Hill.
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Nearby Words
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