trill (tr?l)n.1. A fluttering or tremulous sound, as that made by certain birds; a warble.2. Music a. The rapid alternation of two tones either a whole or a half tone apart.b. A vibrato.3. Linguistics a. A rapid vibration of one speech organ against another, as of the tongue against the alveolar ridge in Spanish rr.b. A speech sound pronounced with such a vibration.v. trilled, tril·ling, trills v.tr.1. To sound, sing, or play with a trill.2. To articulate (a sound) with a trill.v.intr. To produce or give forth a trill.[Italian trillo, from trillare, to trill, probably ultimately of imitative origin.]American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.trill (tr?l) n1. (Music, other) music a melodic ornament consisting of a rapid alternation between a principal note and the note a whole tone or semitone above it. Usual symbol: tr. (written above a note) or tr 2. a shrill warbling sound, esp as made by some birds3. (Phonetics & Phonology) phonetics a. the articulation of an (r) sound produced by holding the tip of the tongue close to the alveolar ridge, allowing the tongue to make a succession of taps against the ridgeb. the production of a similar effect using the uvula against the back of the tonguevb4. to sound, sing, or play (a trill or with a trill)5. (Phonetics & Phonology) (tr) to pronounce (an (r) sound) by the production of a trill[C17: from Italian trillo, from trillare, apparently from Middle Dutch trillen to vibrate]trill (tr?l) vb, n an archaic or poetic word for trickle[C14: probably of Scandinavian origin; related to Norwegian trilla to roll; see trill1]Collins English Dictionary ? Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014trill (tr?l) n. 1. a rapid alternation of two adjacent musical tones; shake. 2. a similar quavering sound, as that made by a bird or a person laughing. 3. a. a sequence of rapid vibratory movements produced in a speech organ, as the tongue or uvula, by air from the lungs, causing a corresponding sequence of contacts between the vibrating articulator and another surface. b. a speech sound produced by a trill. v.t. 4. to sing, utter, or play with a trill. 5. to pronounce with a trill: to trill an r. v.i. 6. to perform or utter a trill. [1635?45;