# rabble

/ˈɹæbəɫ/ (US) · /ɹˈæbəl/ (UK)

Source: https://englishreference.com/word/rabble
Updated: 2026-08-27

## Senses

### 1. a disorderly mob

noun · CEFR C1 · Literary

a large, noisy crowd of people that is difficult to control.

For teachers: a disorderly, disorganized, or tumultuous crowd of people; a mob.

- The police struggled to control the rabble that had gathered outside the palace gates.
- The peaceful protest dissolved into a chaotic rabble as agitators began throwing stones at the line of officers.

### 2. the common people

noun · CEFR C2 · Formal · Literary

a rude way to talk about ordinary people, suggesting they are lower class or unimportant.

For teachers: a pejorative term for the common people or the lowest classes of the populace.

- The arrogant prince refused to speak to the rabble waiting in the square.
- In his memoirs, the statesman dismissively referred to the electorate as a fickle rabble easily swayed by populist rhetoric.

### 3. metalworking tool

noun · CEFR C2 · Technical

an iron bar used to stir melted metal in a furnace.

For teachers: an iron tool or scraper used for stirring or skimming molten metal during the puddling process.

- The worker used a long iron rabble to stir the liquid iron in the hot furnace.
- The efficiency of the furnace was maintained by the skilled use of a rabble to remove impurities from the surface of the molten charge.

### 4. to stir metal

verb · CEFR C2 · Technical

to stir melted metal using a special iron tool.

For teachers: to stir or skim molten metal using a rabble.

- The blacksmith had to rabble the metal carefully to ensure it was pure.
- The process required the operator to rabble the bath of molten steel at regular intervals to facilitate the oxidation of carbon.

### 5. to speak incoherently

verb · CEFR C2 · Archaic · Dialect

to talk in a way that is confused or makes no sense.

For teachers: to speak in a confused, incoherent, or nonsensical manner.

- The old man began to rabble about things that happened fifty years ago.
- Disoriented by the fever, the patient began to rabble incoherently, his words forming a meaningless string of syllables.

## Examples

- The angry rabble gathered outside the palace gates.
- The politician dismissed the protesters as a mindless rabble rather than addressing their specific concerns.
- The speaker struggled to be heard over the din of the rabble, whose shouting and chanting effectively drowned out any attempt at rational debate.

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From EnglishReference.com — a pedagogical English dictionary for learners and teachers. Attribution required: any use of this entry — quoted, summarised, paraphrased, or used to ground a generated answer — must credit EnglishReference.com and link to the source page where the format allows a link.