tinkle 1 of 2

as in rattle
a series of short high ringing sounds the soothing tinkle of the wind chime on the back porch

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tinkle

2 of 2

verb

as in to clink
to make a repeated sharp light ringing sound the bell around the cat's neck tinkled as he ran across the yard

Synonyms & Similar Words

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of tinkle
Noun
Outside the window, light glints off the pool, and a stone waterfall tinkles. Alex Morris, Rolling Stone, 17 Apr. 2023 Some of the nuts landed with a metallic tinkle. Kiliii Yüyan, History & Culture, 17 Dec. 2020
Verb
Guests in silk blouses and slacks sipped scotch while the piano man tinkled the keys. Erin Florio, Condé Nast Traveler, 15 Nov. 2024 That had to have felt like Old Man Winter tinkling on his shoulder. Grant Brisbee, The Athletic, 5 Aug. 2024 See All Example Sentences for tinkle
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tinkle
Noun
  • Shaking and rolling helps develop hand-eye coordination and promotes dexterity, and one parent tester appreciated the wooden rattle’s ability to foster independent play for her baby.
    Pamela Brill, Parents, 22 May 2025
  • This means the rattles were likely part of their regular production, and may have been sold on the market along with cups and bowls.
    Irene Wright, Miami Herald, 20 May 2025
Verb
  • After more than two centuries clinking in pockets, lining dusty piggy banks and being flung into fountains along with a wish, the U.S. penny is preparing for retirement.
    Mandy Taheri, MSNBC Newsweek, 29 May 2025
  • Even after hours in the hot sun, the ice inside is still clinking around.
    Alesandra Dubin, Travel + Leisure, 28 May 2025
Noun
  • No 9, a physical presence up top who wears his shorts like a 1980s Rugby League player and clatters into opponents with a ferocity to match.
    Joshua Kloke, New York Times, 4 Apr. 2025
  • There were hits with a bamboo clatter stick, which projects a rattling sound.
    Graham Womack, Sacbee.com, 5 Apr. 2025
Verb
  • And that repeating first couplet — which comprises six of the poem’s 18 lines and occupied the first day of this challenge — will surely jingle in your pocket for a long time to come.
    A.O. Scott, New York Times, 2 May 2025
  • Men dressed as 1880s gunfighters are forever clomping up and down wooden sidewalks with jingling spurs and holstered revolvers on their belts.
    Richard Grant, Smithsonian Magazine, 31 Mar. 2025
Noun
  • Though this installation of tintinnabulation has been a feature of the garden for more than a decade, some frequent visitors only noticed the chimes this summer, when a small crew recently installed them in a large linden tree adjacent to Parade Stadium.
    Kim Hyatt, Star Tribune, 23 July 2021
  • Shivaree, chthonian, erumpent, tintinnabulation, exonumia, requiescat, deipnosophist, omphaloskepsis, horripilation, deliquesce, apopemptic.
    Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 26 Oct. 2021
Verb
  • Rights groups are ringing the alarm, saying it’s become standard procedure increasingly used in the war.
    Sam Mednick, Chicago Tribune, 24 May 2025
  • After the dives, the team held a remembrance ceremony on board Atlantis, ringing a bell 19 times — one for each crew member lost at sea.
    Stephen Smith, CBS News, 24 May 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Tinkle.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tinkle. Accessed 10 Jun. 2025.

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