What it means
A chatterbox is someone who simply cannot stop talking, the friend who fills every silence, narrates their whole day and somehow keeps going long after everyone else has run out of words. It's rarely an insult, more a fond eye-roll at someone who's just bursting with things to say. Put two chatterboxes together and nobody else gets a word in.
Usage examples
"My little one is a complete chatterbox, she narrates every single thing she sees."
"Put the two of them together and it's chatterbox central, no silence for hours."
"He's a proper chatterbox once he gets comfy, you won't hear a second of silence after that."
"My niece is such a chatterbox, she gave me the full play-by-play of her trip to the shops."
Where it comes from
"Chatterbox" has been around in English since the 18th century as a playful label for someone who talks nonstop. It joins "chatter," meaning rapid talk, with "box," used in older compounds for a container or source. The image is simple and sticky: a person whose words just keep spilling out.
Other ways to say it
Editors of this term
Feather Guardian Bird Official watcher of this expression
Tell me, what have you got for me?