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PlainSpell

rattle

/ˈɹæ.təl/verb, noun

rattle is spelled R-A-T-T-L-E: 6 letters and 2 syllables. It appears 2.2 times per million words in written English, the 18,297th most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, rattle means “To create a rattling sound by shaking or striking” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).

How many letters and syllables are in rattle?

Letters6: R-A-T-T-L-E
Syllables2 (from its American pronunciation)
In writing2.2 times per million words; the 18,297th most frequent word form
Wrong spellings searchednone measured in search
Same letters

Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation and the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media); rhymes and same-letter words are computed by PlainSpell from its own word list.

How common is rattle?

Rattle appears 2.2 times per million words in written English, the 18,297th most frequent word form in the list.

Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).

How do you pronounce rattle?

  • /ˈɹæ.təl/
  • [ˈɹæ.tɫ̩]

Rattle has 2 syllables (counted from its American pronunciation in the CMU Pronouncing Dictionary).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-rattle.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).

What rhymes with rattle?

No other word on PlainSpell ends in the same sounds as rattle.

Spelled with the same letters in another order: latter.

Computed by PlainSpell from the pronunciations in the English Wiktionary (dump of September 2, 2026): a rhyme shares every sound from the last stressed vowel to the end; ordered by written frequency (wordfreq 3.1).

Forms of rattle

  • rattles present, singular, he/she/it, plural
  • rattling participle, present
  • rattled participle, past

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

What does rattle mean?

The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).

verb

  1. 1

    To create a rattling sound by shaking or striking.

    to rattle a chain

  2. 2

    informalTo scare, startle, unsettle, or unnerve.

  3. 3

    To make a rattling noise; to make noise by or from shaking.

    I wish the dashboard in my car would quit rattling.

  4. 4

    obsoleteTo assail, annoy, or stun with a rattling noise.

  5. 5

    obsoleteTo scold; to rail at.

  6. 6

    To drive or ride briskly, so as to make a clattering.

    We rattled along for a couple of miles.

  7. 7

    To make a clatter with one's voice; to talk rapidly and idly; often with on or away.

    She rattled on for an hour.

  8. 8

    UKslangTo experience withdrawal from drugs.

noun

  1. 1

    Any of various plants of the genera Rhinanthus and Pedicularis, whose seeds produce a rattling noise in the wind.

  2. 2

    A baby’s toy designed to make sound when shaken, usually containing loose grains or pellets in a hollow container.

  3. 3

    A musical instrument that makes a rattling sound.

  4. 4

    A device which produces a loud rattling sound, especially one having a ratchet mechanism and spun round on a handle.

  5. 5

    The set of rings at the end of a rattlesnake's tail which produce a rattling sound.

    The rattle of the rattlesnake is composed of the hardened terminal scales, loosened in succession, but not cast off, and modified in form so as to make a series of loose, hollow joints.

  6. 6

    A rapid succession of percussive sounds, as made by loose objects shaking or vibrating against one another.

    I wish they would fix the rattle under my dashboard.

  7. 7

    archaicNoisy, rapid talk; babble.

  8. 8

    archaicTrivial chatter; gossip.

  9. 9

    Alternative form of rottol: a former Middle Eastern and North African unit of dry weight usually equal to 1–5 lb (0.5–2.5 kg).

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

Rattle in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese

LanguageWords
Frenchcliqueter (to create a sound by shaking), inquiéter (to scare, startle, unsettle, or unnerve), faire s'entrechoquer (to make a rattling noise), râler (to make a rattling noise in the chest whilst…), gronder, houspiller (to scold; to rail at)
Germanrasseln, scheppern (to create a sound by shaking), verunsichern (to scare, startle, unsettle, or unnerve), Rasseln, Klappern, Gerassel (sound)
Portuguesechocalhar, chacoalhar (to create a sound by shaking), inquietar, desconcertar (to scare, startle, unsettle, or unnerve), chocalhada (sound), chocalho (baby’s toy)
Spanishtraquetear, sonajear (to create a sound by shaking), inquietar (to scare, startle, unsettle, or unnerve), cascabelear, tracatear (to make a rattling noise), matraca (sound)

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.

Where does rattle come from?

From Middle English ratelen, of uncertain origin; perhaps borrowed from Middle Dutch ratelen or of native origin related to Old English hratele, hrætele (“a plant known for its rustling or rattling sound”), ultimately imitative. The noun (c. 1500) is from the verb.

Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).

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