grum·ble

verb

/ˈɡrʌmbl/

Verb Forms

present simple I / you / we / they grumble	/ˈɡrʌmbl/ /ˈɡrʌmbl/
he / she / it grumbles	/ˈɡrʌmblz/ /ˈɡrʌmblz/
past simple grumbled	/ˈɡrʌmbld/ /ˈɡrʌmbld/
past participle grumbled	/ˈɡrʌmbld/ /ˈɡrʌmbld/
-ing form grumbling	/ˈɡrʌmblɪŋ/ /ˈɡrʌmblɪŋ/

[intransitive, transitive] to complain about somebody/something, especially something that is not really very serious咕哝；抱怨；发牢骚
- grumble (at/to somebody) (about/at somebody/something) She's always grumbling to me about how badly she's treated at work.她总是向我抱怨她在工作中如何受亏待。
- + speech ‘I'll just have to do it myself,’ he grumbled.“我只好自己动手了。”他咕哝着说。
- grumble that… They kept grumbling that they were cold.他们不停地嘟囔着说冷。
Synonyms complain
complainprotest ▪ object ▪ grumble ▪ moan ▪ whineThese words all mean to say that you are annoyed, unhappy or not satisfied about somebody/something.
complain to say that you are annoyed, unhappy or not satisfied about somebody/something:
I’m going to complain to the manager about this.我要就这件事向经理投诉。
protest to say or do something to show that you disagree with something or think it is bad, especially publicly; to give something as a reason for protesting:
Students took to the streets to protest against the decision.学生们走上街头，抗议这项决定。
object to say that you disagree with something or think it is bad; to give something as a reason for objecting:
If nobody objects, we’ll postpone the meeting till next week.如果没有人反对，我们就把会议推迟到下周。
He objected that the police had arrested him without sufficient evidence.他抗辩说警察没有充分的证据就逮捕了他。
grumble (rather informal, disapproving) to complain about somebody/something, especially something that is not really very serious:
They kept grumbling that they were cold.他们不停地嘟囔着说冷。
moan (British English, rather informal, disapproving) to complain about somebody/something in an annoying way:
What are you moaning about now?你在嘟囔些什么？
whine (rather informal, disapproving) to complain in an annoying, crying voice:
Stop whining!别哭哭啼啼的！
‘I want to go home,’ whined Toby.“我要回家。”托比哼哼唧唧地说。
Whine is often used to talk about the way that young children complain.
Patterns
- to complain/protest/grumble/moan/whine about something
- to complain/protest/grumble/moan at something
- to complain/protest/object/grumble/moan/whine to somebody
- to complain/protest/object/grumble/moan/whine that…
Extra Examples
- He was always grumbling at me.他总是对我发牢骚。
- I can't bear people who grumble about the weather.我无法忍受那些抱怨天气的人。
- She grumbled at having to carry so many boxes.她抱怨不得不搬这么多箱子。
- We're all well at the moment, so I can't grumble.我们现在都很好，所以我不能抱怨。
[intransitive] to make a deep continuous sound咕隆；发轰隆声 synonym rumble
- Thunder grumbled in the distance.远处雷声隆隆。

Word Originlate 16th cent.: from obsolete grumme (probably of Germanic origin and related to Dutch grommen) + -le.

grum·ble

noun

/ˈɡrʌmbl/

grumble (about something) | grumble (that…) something that you complain about because you are not satisfied嘟囔；牢骚
- My main grumble is about the lack of privacy.我最大的抱怨是缺乏私密性。
- Her mother had a grumble at her for not tidying up the mess.她妈妈抱怨她没有收拾残局。
- There were a few grumbles that staff hadn’t been consulted first.有人抱怨说没有先咨询工作人员。
a long low sound咕隆声；隆隆声 synonym rumble
- a distant grumble of thunder远处隆隆的雷声

Word Originlate 16th cent.: from obsolete grumme (probably of Germanic origin and related to Dutch grommen) + -le.