rattle

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A rattle is a loud, high-pitched sound that something makes when it's shaken or moved.

You might hear a rattle coming from an old car with loose parts or a bag of clothes with a few coins inside. People also use "rattle" to describe the noise someone's teeth make when they're hungry or cold. For example, if you see your friend shivering and their teeth start chattering, you could say, "You must be freezing – your teeth are rattling!" In sports, coaches might yell at an opponent to stop racking up points by "rattling" the goal with multiple shots on net.

How common is "rattle"?

Word rattle is considered uncommon in modern English.
It appears most frequently in fiction texts and less often in other writings.

Definitions

verb

(transitive, ergative) To create a rattling sound by shaking or striking.
Example: to rattle a chain
(transitive, figurative, informal) To scare, startle, unsettle, or unnerve.
(intransitive) To make a rattling noise; to make noise by or from shaking.
Example: I wish the dashboard in my car would quit rattling.
(transitive, obsolete) To assail, annoy, or stun with a rattling noise.
(transitive, obsolete) To scold; to rail at.
To drive or ride briskly, so as to make a clattering.
Example: We rattled along for a couple of miles.
To make a clatter with one's voice; to talk rapidly and idly; often with on or away.
Example: She rattled on for an hour.
(UK, slang) To experience withdrawal from drugs.