What does chittering mean?
Chittering is the act of trembling or shivering, typically from cold or fear, as well as the making of quick, high-pitched chirping sounds like those of small birds. As the present participle of the verb 'to chitter', it carries a vivid, sensory quality: a dog left out in the rain may be described as chittering, just as swallows may be heard chittering beneath an eave at dusk. The word belongs largely to literary and regional usage—the shivering sense survives especially in Scottish and northern English dialect—and lends writing an intimate, slightly old-fashioned charm that plainer words like 'shivering' lack. It is most at home in descriptive prose: nature writing, fiction, and evocative reportage. Because the two senses share one imitative root—an echo of tiny, rapid sounds made by a cold or excited body—chittering neatly captures the way shivering teeth and a twittering bird can sound remarkably alike, which is precisely what makes this modest little word so memorable.
Present participle of chitter: to tremble or shiver with cold or fear; or to utter a series of light, rapid chirping sounds.
"The hedgehog lay chittering in its nest of leaves."
The shivering sense is chiefly Scottish and northern English dialect; the chirping sense is widespread in literary and nature writing.
A chittering sound; light, rapid twittering or the sound of shivering.
"A faint chittering came from the ivy above the door."
Rare; usually found in literary descriptions of repeated twittering or shivering sounds.
"The chitterings of the bats echoed through the cave."
Before it meant a bird's twitter, to chitter meant to shiver—the word literally lets cold make you chatter like a sparrow.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Etymology of chittering
Chitter derives from Middle English 'chiteren', meaning to twitter or chirp, and is ultimately imitative in origin—a word coined from the sound it describes. By at least the sixteenth century it had developed the sense of trembling or shivering, presumably because chattering teeth resemble a bird's rapid twitter. Related forms appear across Germanic languages, and the same imitative impulse gives us 'twitter' and 'chatter'.
Related word forms
How chittering is actually used
The verb 'to chitter' in its shivering sense survives chiefly in Scottish and northern English dialect, though the form appears widely in literary use. The avian sense is common in nature writing. The word has an informal, often affectionate register.
Easily confused with chittering
Chattering is general rapid talk or teeth-clacking, while chittering more specifically suggests a thin, tremulous sound—either a bird's twitter or the shivering itself.