jibber-jabber

/ˈdʒɪbə(ɹ)ˌdʒæbə(ɹ)/

//ˈdʒɪbə(ɹ)ˌdʒæbə(ɹ)// noun

"jibber-jabber" is a 12-letter English headword indexed on PlainSpell.

The verdict

“jibber-jabber” is uncommon English (outside the top frequency list), classed as a noun. The kind of spelling people second-guess.

Unranked
below top-frequency English
13
letters

According to Wiktionary data (CC BY-SA, analyzed September 3, 2026) - Excessive or meaningless talk.

Corpus desk

Index EN-jibber-jabber · jibber-jabber · English

jibber-jabber · unranked · 0 variants · 0 confusables

  • FREQ-UNRANKED Unranked
  • LEN-MEGA 13 letters
  • VOW-4 4 vowels
  • CONFUS-0 No pairs
  • VAR-0 0 variants
  • BOOK-THIN "J" thin
  • PHOTO-UNK Peer pending

Read with this headword: Spelling guide for this pattern

Desk codes from Wiktionary headword shape, FrequencyWords rank tier, confusable-pair count, generated misspelling depth, letter-cohort book size, and photo-finish peer. Not a difficulty grade.

Key facts for jibber-jabber
PropertyValue
Headwordjibber-jabber
LanguageEnglish
Part of speechNoun
IPA/ˈdʒɪbə(ɹ)ˌdʒæbə(ɹ)/
Letters13
Misspellings tracked0
Confusable pairs0
SourceWiktionary (kaikki.org)

Long-tail rank of “jibber-jabber” in English

jibber-jabbersits beyond the 100,000 most-frequent English words, in the long tail of technical, archaic, or otherwise rare vocabulary where spelling doubt tends to strike hardest.

Beyond rank #100,000. Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list.

Rare enough to double-check

jibber-jabber is uncommon English outside the top frequency list, classed as anoun, transcribed /ˈdʒɪbə(ɹ)ˌdʒæbə(ɹ)/. Rarity is why readers land here mid-draft. Gloss: "Excessive or meaningless talk.".

Our edit-distance generator produced no likely misspellings for jibber-jabber, since its letter pattern doesn't lend itself to common typo substitutions. This entry stands alone in our confusable dataset, which tends to mean the word is visually distinctive enough to stand on its own.

Etymologically, the entry records: A reduplicative form of jabber. The correct English form is jibber-jabber, spelled J-I-B-B-E-R---J-A-B-B-E-R.

Definition

  1. 1
    Excessive or meaningless talk.

Recorded use

Wiktionary examples

These source excerpts show how jibber-jabber appears in context. They illustrate usage; the definition above remains the entry’s reference meaning.

  1. And I would ask counsel to check his sense of humor at the door. My courtroom is a temple of decorum, and I do not tolerate jibber-jabber.
  2. Douglas: Well done on passing the test, Jen... Yes, all those clumsy attempts at seduction. Don't tell me you couldn't see through them. They were a test to find out whether you really wanted to work for me or whether you just wanted to come up here for my body. Jen: Oh, no, no, no, no, no, not at all. Douglas: All right. Jen: No, physically you're just n…

Etymology

A reduplicative form of jabber.

Definitions, pronunciation, and etymology for this entry are drawn from Wiktionary via the kaikki.org structured extract (CC BY-SA). See the methodology for how each field is sourced and updated.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you spell "jibber-jabber"?
"jibber-jabber" is spelled J-I-B-B-E-R---J-A-B-B-E-R. The IPA pronunciation is /ˈdʒɪbə(ɹ)ˌdʒæbə(ɹ)/.
What does "jibber-jabber" mean?
As a noun, "jibber-jabber" means: Excessive or meaningless talk.
How do you pronounce "jibber-jabber"?
The IPA (International Phonetic Alphabet) transcription for "jibber-jabber" is /ˈdʒɪbə(ɹ)ˌdʒæbə(ɹ)/. Click the speaker icon on the pronunciation badge above to hear it spoken aloud where audio is available.
What is the origin of the word "jibber-jabber"?
A reduplicative form of jabber. See the full etymology section above for more details.
Is PlainSpell free to use?
Yes, PlainSpell is a completely free word reference. You can look up definitions, pronunciations, confusable pairs, homophones, and spelling corrections across 5 languages without any sign-up or subscription.

Source: Wiktionary (via kaikki.org) Structured Wiktionary extract

Source: FrequencyWords open word-frequency list