rattle-bag
Definition
- Noun:
- A child's toy that makes a noise when shaken: "rattle-bag" refers to a simple toy, often a container filled with small objects like beads or pebbles, that produces a rattling sound when shaken.
- A talkative person (informal): In colloquial usage, "rattle-bag" describes a person who talks excessively or incessantly, often in a noisy or trivial manner.
Usage Examples
Noun (toy):
- The baby was amused by the colorful rattle-bag. (A toy that makes a rattling noise for entertainment.)
- She gave the rattle-bag a shake, and the children laughed. (She used the toy to produce sound.)
Noun (person):
- He is such a rattle-bag; he never stops talking about his travels. (A person who talks too much.)
- Our neighbor is a friendly rattle-bag, always sharing gossip. (A talkative individual in a casual sense.)
Advanced Usage
- "to be a rattle-bag": used metaphorically to describe someone who is noisy or verbose.
- In meetings, she becomes a rattle-bag, dominating the conversation. (She talks excessively in a formal setting.)
Variants and Related Words
Rattle (n/v): a rapid series of short, sharp sounds; to make such sounds.
- The rattle of the train woke me up. (The noise.)
- He rattled the keys in his pocket. (To cause a rattling sound.)
Bag (n): a flexible container for carrying items.
- She packed her lunch in a paper bag. (A simple container.)
Synonyms
- For the toy: Rattle, shaker, noisemaker.
- For the person: Chatterbox, gossip, blabbermouth (all informal).
Related Idioms
Rattle someone's cage: to deliberately annoy or provoke someone.
- He kept asking questions just to rattle her cage. (To disturb or irritate.)
Like a bag of bones: extremely thin or emaciated (not directly related but shares the "bag" metaphor).
- After the illness, he looked like a bag of bones. (Very skinny.)