Chunter is of imitative origin, perhaps a frequentative based on the sound of low, continuous muttering; a chiefly British dialectal word. The historical trail runs through chunter in onomatopoeic. Its formation is sound-symbolic rather than a regular transparent compound, with the older form echoing the sound named in the history. Used as a verb, chunter now means "mutter or grumble monotonously", so the present definition can be read against the older forms and meanings. The same lexical family is also visible in related forms such as chunner. For dictionary purposes, the important point is the continuity between the historical form and the modern word chunter.