Have you ever been rumbled? - (Rumble as an idiom) How to learn English with Mr Duncan (2025)

Have you ever been rumbled?

Have you ever been discovered to have done something you should not have?

To be rumbled means to be found out.

Something you did that you tried to keep secret has been discovered.

You have been rumbled.

You've been found out.

Perhaps a secret that you've been keeping to yourself.

Such as a surprise birthday party for your best friend has been rumbled.

You tried your best to keep that secret safe.

However, your friend managed to work out that you have a surprise for them.

They have rumbled your surprise.

To find out about something is to rumble.

To be discovered trying to hide something means rumble as well.

In other words, this action works both ways.

In the same way that someone can discover a secret or a person hiding something can be found out.

One can discover or be discovered, to find out or be found out.

We can also use the phrase ‘the cat is out of the bag’.

This means the thing that was being kept secret is now known to everyone.

‘The cat is out of the bag’.

Someone let the cat out of the bag.

That secret is no secret anymore.

A small indiscretion might be found out.

A small mistake or a silly action is discovered.

The thing rumbled may have no consequences at all.

Or it could have big repercussions for the person connected to it.

The repercussion is the outcome or the effect created by an action.

The sequence is often... something done, that thing is found out and the result is either small or large...

...minor or serious.

The result is the repercussion.

It's worth noting that this particular use of rumble usually exists in British English.

Rumble as a slang term can also mean street fight.

A fight taking place between two groups might be described as a rumble.

This use is normally found in American English.

It is worth adding that the sound of thunder can be described as a rumble, as in a rumble of thunder.

So the next time you have something to hide, make sure you keep it well hidden, or you may find yourself being found out.

You will be rumbled.