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  #1 (permalink)  
Unread Jun 8th, 2011, 09:59 pm
eslHQ Zealot
 
Join Date: Feb 9th, 2009
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Default Ramble/Jabber/Babble/Gabble

Hi everybody

I understand the meaning of these verbs in English but I find it a bit difficult to differentiate them. Can they be synonyms in any given context?

Thank you in advance!
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  #2 (permalink)  
Unread Jun 9th, 2011, 06:19 am
Sue
 
Join Date: Oct 8th, 2006
Location: Milan
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Default Re: Ramble/Jabber/Babble/Gabble

No.
Ramble means to talk at length and boringly without any real organisation or aim : He rambled on for hours about his experiences in the army. It was so boring.
It can also be used to describe the type of speech associated with delirium : By the time his temperature had reached 39°C, he was rambling deliriously.
Babble is used as a technical term in linguistics to describe babies' pre-speech vocalisations - the goo goo ga ga noises they make.
Babble can also be used to describe disjointed, confused speech affected by emotion - eg : He babbled on excitedly
It's also often used as a noun to describe speech which is too distant or overlapping to hear clearly : He could hear a babble of voices coming from the kitchen. and in various forms to describe multiple sounds in general : A babbling brookGabble means to talk very fast or confusedly so that it's difficult for people to understand : He gabbled something about meeting Mary and rushed out the door.
Jabber means to talk in continuation without saying anything very important : My son didn't speak at all till he was three, but then, within a couple of months, he was jabbering away all day.

So each is slightly different. Leaving out the technical use of babble I'd analyse them as :
ramble = + at length; - organisation; (possibly) + slow + boring; (possibly) + deliriously
babble (verb) = + confusion; + emotion ;
babble (noun/adjective) - comprehension; + multiple sounds
gabble = + speed; (possibly) + confusion/emotion; - comprehension.
jabber : + at length; - importance
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