gobble

1 of 2

verb (1)

gob·​ble ˈgä-bəl 

gobbled; gobbling ˈgä-b(ə-)liŋ 

transitive verb

1

: to swallow or eat greedily

2

: to take eagerly : grab

—usually used with up

3

: to read rapidly or greedily

—usually used with up

gobble

2 of 2

verb (2)

gobbled; gobbling ˈgä-b(ə-)liŋ 

intransitive verb

1

: to make the natural guttural noise of a male turkey

2

: to make a sound resembling the gobble of a turkey

gobble noun

Synonyms

Verb (1)

• bolt
• cram
• devour
• glut [archaic]
• gorge
• gormandize
• gulp
• ingurgitate
• inhale
• raven
• scarf
• scoff
• slop
• wolf

Examples of gobble in a Sentence

Verb (1)

gobbled the sandwiches like they hadn't eaten for days

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

The president and his aides have accused the Chinese of selling heavy metals at artificially low prices worldwide in order to gobble up market share, to the detriment of American producers. —Jim Tankersley, New York Times, 10 May 2024

The video, posted on X, shows a dead turkey with its crop cut open, revealing at least a dozen cicadas that the bird had been gobbling up. —Michael Dorgan, Fox News, 9 May 2024

Word History

Etymology

Verb (1)

probably irregular from gob entry 1

Verb (2)

imitative

First Known Use

Verb (1)

1583, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Verb (2)

1680, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

gobble

1 of 2 verb

gob·​ble ˈgäb-əl 

gobbled; gobbling -(ə-)liŋ 

1

: to swallow or eat greedily

2

: to take eagerly : grab

the small country was gobbled up by its neighbor

gobble

2 of 2 verb

: to make the sound of a male turkey

gobble noun