What does "twitter" mean?

1. (birds chirping) to make a series of short, high sounds like a bird. 2. (talking excitedly) to talk very quickly in a high voice because you are excited or nervous. 3. (using social media) to post a short message on the website formerly called Twitter. 4. (bird sounds) the short, high sounds made by birds. 5. (nervous excitement) a state of being nervous, worried, or excited.

twitter

v. · n.

US //ˈtwɪtɝ// UK //twˈɪtɐ// twit·ter

1 birds chirping (v.)
A2 Elementary

to make a series of short, high sounds like a bird.

to utter a succession of short, high-pitched sounds or chirps. Intransitive in this sense.

Example

The birds began to twitter in the trees just before the sun came up.

Example

As the first light touched the garden, dozens of sparrows began to twitter in the hedgerow, creating a constant wall of sound.
- chirp
- warble
- tweet
2 talking excitedly (v.)
B2 Upper Intermediate

to talk very quickly in a high voice because you are excited or nervous.

to speak in a rapid, light, and often trivial or nervous manner. Often used to describe a group of people talking at once.

Example

The fans were twittering with excitement while they waited for the singer to appear.

Example

The guests continued to twitter about the scandal long after the host had attempted to change the subject to something more neutral.
- chatter
- babble

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3 using social media (v.)
B1 Intermediate Informal Computing

to post a short message on the website formerly called Twitter.

to post a microblog update on the platform formerly known as Twitter. Now largely superseded by 'post' or 'tweet' following the platform's rebranding to X.

Example

He used to twitter several times a day to share his political opinions.

Example

During the live broadcast, thousands of viewers would twitter their reactions in real-time using the official event hashtag.
- tweet
- post
4 bird sounds (n.)
A2 Elementary

the short, high sounds made by birds.

a succession of chirps or light, tremulous sounds characteristic of small birds.

Example

The quiet of the morning was broken only by the soft twitter of birds.

Example

The distant twitter of swallows provided a peaceful soundtrack to the afternoon spent reading in the garden.
- chirping
- twittering
5 nervous excitement (n.)
C1 Advanced British English Informal

a state of being nervous, worried, or excited.

a state of tremulous excitement or nervous agitation. Frequently used in the idiomatic phrase 'in a twitter'.

Example

The news of the royal visit had the whole village in a twitter.

Example

The office was in a complete twitter as staff scrambled to prepare the boardroom for the unexpected arrival of the chief executive.
- flutter
- tizzy
- dither
- calm

Etymology 1

From Middle English twitren, twiteren, from Old English twiterian, from Proto-West Germanic twitwiʀōn, from Proto-Germanic *twitwizōną (“to chirp; twitter”). Cognate with Low German twitteren (“to twitter”), German zwitzern, zwitschern (“to twitter”). Compare also Dutch kwetteren (“to twitter”), Danish kvidre (“to twitter”), Swedish kvittra (“to twitter”), dialectal Swedish tittra (“to twitter”).

Etymology 2

Origin unknown; possibly related to twine, twist, and twirl.