1(of a cat) make a low continuous vibratory sound expressing contentment.

1. 1.1(of a vehicle or engine) move smoothly while making a low vibratory sound.
   ‘a sleek blue BMW purred past him’
   More example sentences

   • ‘The car zoomed up behind Jack's BMW, its engine purring and the bright sun reflecting off its red chassis.’
   • ‘He started the car, and drove off, into the horizon, his car engine purring like a happy kitten.’
   • ‘Gwen pulled to a stop in front of the Browning mansion, the Benz's engine purring softly under the shiny silver hood.’
   • ‘Sighs of relief all round as the car sailed along, engine purring and gears enjoying a well-deserved rest.’
   • ‘Still, it won't the the only thing on that peninsula that's becoming a rich person's plaything, judging by the flash cars purring in and out of the yuppie village.’
   • ‘They were not disappointed as the 25 vintage cars purred into town, making a grand tour of the area after the parade for the occasion.’
   • ‘The car softly purred to a stop outside her house, and a man, sleekly and darkly dressed, got out and confidently walked straight into the house!’
   • ‘As the sky made its final graduations to ink black, a single car purred softly up the road, but no one inside the houses were out to notice.’
   • ‘If you drove a formula one racing car to work and you stopped at the garage to put in high-octane fuel, your car would purr with delight and function to the best of its capabilities.’
   • ‘In the not-so-distant future, we could be seeing their delivery trucks purring along on cocodiesel.’
   • ‘As the blue Mercedes purred down I - 91 towards Lone Woman Mountain, I put my past behind me where it belonged.’
   • ‘The '69 midnight blue mustang purred to life and she roared down the street.’
   • ‘The high priced vehicles that purred their way down the streets, the pollution free electrical engines carrying the people of this level around, were far more expensive than anyone on a lower level could afford.’
   • ‘They buy a secondhand sub that sounds fine as it purrs its way out of Faslane, but a day out of port, the vessel is swept by a serious fire. The Canadians are far too polite to say as much, but they feel as though they've been had.’
   • ‘My convertible purred to a near halt, maintaining a turtle speed as I skimmed the sidewalks on the way to school.’
   • ‘People rarely walked up this way to Tamberly Road and the large houses looming at the end of it, preferring to purr their way up in sleek black cars.’
   • ‘The Salmond machine purred into town and blew away the cobwebs.’
   • ‘As more than sixty of the elegant vehicles pompously purred their way through the city.’
   • ‘The roads are clear, and the Lexus purrs into life as we speed through the winter mist to stake-out the suspect.’
   Synonyms

   purr, sound, reverberate, ring, beep, bleep, warble
2. 1.2Speak in a low, soft voice, especially when expressing contentment or acting seductively.
   with direct speech ‘“Would you like coffee?” she purred’
   More example sentences

   • ‘she purred her lines seductively’
   • ‘The female voice purred seductively in his ear.’
   • ‘Her voice was low and purring, seductive and soothing.’
   • ‘A silky voice purred and I cringed, hating myself for what I was about to do.’
   • ‘The voice purred in his head, clear as though someone had leant down to his ear and spoken in the normal tone of conversational speech.’
   • ‘His voice was soft, almost purring, and friendly.’
   • ‘This was a great team display, a display which left manager Ian Moffett purring with delight.’
   • ‘The words themselves were harsh, but the voice was the warm, purring sound of a female he knew he had never met before.’
   • ‘Nicholas had leaned over the couch between an unphased Dominique and yours truly and snuggled his face right next to mine to purr that particular question.’
   • ‘No, I didn't soothe him with purring words of empathy.’
   • ‘‘Only if y-you come with me,’ she purred getting to her feet.’
   • ‘Diana purred her pleasure, and snuggled closer.’
   • ‘Raven purred sliding her tiny hand into his, ‘Gina didn't tell me how incredibly good-looking you are.’’
   • ‘‘Mm, I see,’ she purred letting the sheet droop even lower on her body to expose more of her skin.’
   • ‘Maybe, who always wore stiletto heals and whit eyeliner around her bright blue eyes, she made me think of a kitty cat, slinking around in silk dresses and purring her hellos.’
   • ‘‘Hey, Devlin’, purred the young women as he slowly inched his way along.’
   • ‘She purred the words, a smile lulled onto her lips.’
   • ‘‘Come back to bed sugar’ she purred letting the sheet drop and laid back against the pillows.’
   • ‘I slipped between the sheets of the bed in the darkness, and Tabitha wrapped herself around me and purred me to sleep.’
   • ‘I purred a little, to catch Dauragon's attention, and he smiled thinly down at me.’
   • ‘Lee purred stepping closer, his eyes half open in what I thought was supposed to be a seductive manner.’

A low continuous vibratory sound, typically that made by a cat or vehicle.