Spoke quickly and unintelligibly, usually because of fear or excitement.
From 'gibber,' which originated in the 17th century, likely from imitative or onomatopoetic origins suggesting rapid, unclear speech. The term may relate to 'gabble' or have connections to Cockney rhyming slang.
The word 'gibber' became popular in English after colonial contact with Aboriginal Australians, where 'gibber' actually means a speech in their languages—but English speakers hilariously misheard rapid indigenous speech and thought it meant 'to talk nonsense,' flipping the meaning entirely.
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