to sing or whistle with trills, quavers, or melodic embellishments: The canary warbled most of the day.
2.
to yodel.
3.
(of electronic equipment) to produce a continuous sound varying regularly in pitch and frequency.
–verb (used with object)
4.
to sing (an aria or other selection) with trills, quavers, or melodious turns.
5.
to express or celebrate in or as if in song; carol.
–noun
6.
a warbled song or succession of melodic trills, quavers, etc.
7.
the act of warbling.
[Origin: 1300–50; ME werble a tune < ONF < Gmc; cf. OHG werbel something that turns, equiv. to werb- (c. OE hweorf- in hweorfan to turn) + -el n. suffix]
c.1300, from O.N.Fr. werbler "to sing with trills and quavers," from Frank. *werbilon (cf. O.H.G. wirbil "whirlwind," Ger. Wirbel "whirl, whirlpool, tuning peg, vertebra," M.Du. wervelen "to turn, whirl"); see whirl. The noun meaning "tune, melody" is recorded from c.1300. Warbler applied to Old World songbirds (1773), in North America to birds that look like them but sing little (1783).
War"ble\, n. [Cf. Wormil.]1. (Far.) (a) A small, hard tumor which is produced on the back of a horse by the heat or pressure of the saddle in traveling. (b) A small tumor produced by the larv[ae] of the gadfly in the backs of horses, cattle, etc. Called also warblet, warbeetle, warnles. 2. (Zo["o]l.) See Wormil.
War"ble\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Warbled; p. pr. & vb. n. Warbling.] [OE. werbelen, OF. werbler; of Teutonic origin; cf. G. wirbeln to turn, to warble, D. wervelen, akin to E. whirl. See Whirl.]1. To sing in a trilling, quavering, or vibratory manner; to modulate with turns or variations; to trill; as, certain birds are remarkable for warbling their songs. 2. To utter musically; to modulate; to carol. If she be right invoked in warbled song. --Milton. Warbling sweet the nuptial lay. --Trumbull. 3. To cause to quaver or vibrate. "And touch the warbled string." --Milton.
War"ble\, v. i. 1. To be quavered or modulated; to be uttered melodiously. Such strains ne'er warble in the linnet's throat. --Gay. 3. To sing in a trilling manner, or with many turns and variations. "Birds on the branches warbling." --Milton. 3. To sing with sudden changes from chest to head tones; to yodel.
War"ble\, n. A quavering modulation of the voice; a musical trill; a song. And he, the wondrous child, Whose silver warble wild Outvalued every pulsing sound. --Emerson.
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