different between twitter vs whisper

English

Etymology

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

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: tw?t'?r, IPA^(key): /?tw?.t?(?)/
• (General American) enPR: tw?t'?r, IPA^(key): /?tw?.t?/, /?tw?.t??/, [?t?w?.??]
• Rhymes: -?t?(?)

Noun

twitter (countable and uncountable, plural twitters)

1. The sound of a succession of chirps as uttered by birds.

   I often listen to the twitter of the birds in the park.

2. A tremulous broken sound.
3. A slight trembling of the nerves.
4. Unwanted flicker that occurs in interlaced displays when the image contains vertical detail that approaches the horizontal resolution of the video format.
   • 1986, IEEE, Second International Conference on Simulators: 7-11 September 1986 (page 145)

     Interline twitter occurs on interlaced displays at half the field-rate.

Translations

Verb

twitter (third-person singular simple present twitters, present participle twittering, simple past and past participle twittered)

1. (intransitive) To utter a succession of chirps.
   • 1750, Thomas Gray, Elegy Written in a Country Churchyard, 1825, The Works of Thomas Gray, Volume I, page 114,

     The breezy call of incense-breathing Morn, / The swallow twittering from the straw-built shed,
2. (intransitive, transitive) (of a person) To talk in an excited or nervous manner.
3. To make the sound of a half-suppressed laugh; to titter; to giggle.

   (Can we find and add a quotation of J. Fletcher to this entry?)

4. To have a slight trembling of the nerves; to be excited or agitated.
5. (obsolete, transitive) To twit; to reproach or upbraid.

   • I have repented of it many’s the good time and oft. And if he was so good to forgive me a word spoken in haste or so, it doth not become such a one as you to twitter me. He was a husband to me, he was; and if ever I did make use of an ill word or so in a passion, I never called him rascal […]

6. Alternative form of Twitter

Synonyms

• (internet neologism): tweet

Derived terms

• atwitter

Translations

French

Alternative forms

• tweeter

Etymology

From English Twitter

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /twi.te/

Verb

twitter

1. (transitive, intransitive, Internet) to tweet (to post to Twitter)

Conjugation

Related terms

• twit (a tweet (a message on Twitter))
• tweet (a tweet (a message on Twitter))
• twittosphère
• twitteur

English

Etymology

From Middle English whisperen, from Old English hwisprian (“to mutter, murmur, whisper”), fromProto-Germanic *hwispr?n? (“to hiss, whistle, whisper”), from Proto-Indo-European *?weys-, *?wey- (“to hiss, whistle, whisper”). Cognate with Dutch wisperen (“to whisper”), German Low German wispeln (“to whisper”), German wispern (“to mumble, whisper”). Related also to Danish hviske (“to whisper”), Swedish viska (“to whisper”), Norwegian hviske (“to whisper”), Icelandic hvískra and hvísla (“to whisper”). More at English whistle.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) IPA^(key): /?(h)w?sp?/
• (General American) IPA^(key): /?(h)w?sp?/
• Rhymes: -?sp?(?)

Noun

whisper (plural whispers)

1. The act of speaking in a quiet voice, especially, without vibration of the vocal cords.

   I spoke in a near whisper

   • 1883, Robert Louis Stevenson, Treasure Island:

     "Now, look here, Jim Hawkins," he said, in a steady whisper, that was no more than audible.
2. (usually in the plural) A rumor.

   There are whispers of rebellion all around.

3. (figuratively) A faint trace or hint (of something).

   The soup had just a whisper of basil.

4. A low rustling sound, like that of the wind in leaves.
5. (Internet) A private message to an individual in a chat room.
   • 2002, Ralph Schroeder, The Social Life of Avatars (page 218)

     The invisibility of private interactions in the form of whispers resolved an ethical concern in the research but reduced our ability to gauge the volume of interaction […]

   • 2004, Caroline A. Haythornthwaite, Michelle M. Kazmer, Learning, Culture and Community in Online Education (page 179)

     Anyone logged in to the chat room can click on an individual name, highlighting it, and send a message — a whisper — that will be seen only by the selected person.

Derived terms

• stage whisper
• whisper campaign
• whisperous
• whispersome
• whispery

Translations

Verb

whisper (third-person singular simple present whispers, present participle whispering, simple past and past participle whispered)

1. (intransitive) To speak softly, or under the breath, so as to be heard only by one near at hand; to utter words without sonant breath; to talk without that vibration in the larynx which gives sonorous, or vocal, sound.
2. (transitive) To mention privately and confidentially, or in a whisper.
   • 1692, Richard Bentley, A Confutation of Atheism

     They might buzz and whisper it one to another.

3. (intransitive) To make a low, sibilant sound.

   • the hollow, whispering breeze

4. (intransitive) To speak with suspicion or timorous caution; to converse in whispers, as in secret plotting.

   • All that hate me whisper together against me.

5. (transitive, obsolete) To address in a whisper, or low voice.

   • where gentlest breezes whisper souls distressed

6. (transitive, obsolete) To prompt secretly or cautiously; to inform privately.

Derived terms

• whisperer

Translations