Obs. Forms: 4–5 trouble, -el, -ele, trowble, (4 turble), 5 trobil, trobille, trowbul, Sc. trubill. [a. F. trouble (in 12th c. truble, turble, troble, 13th c. tourble, troble, trouble), according to Hatz.-Darm.:—late pop.L. *turbulum, for cl.L. turbidum, whence troubler to TROUBLE. A genuine adjectival form, but perh. sometimes standing in Eng. for troublé, TROUBLY.]
1. Of water, wine, etc., Troubled, turbid, muddy, thick; of air, etc., Misty, murky, cloudy, not clear; in quot. c. 14001, dim, dusky.
a. 1327. On Dreams, in Rel. Ant., I. 263. Water thikke ant trouble.
c. 1400. Rom. Rose, 7116. As moche as … The sunne sourmounteth the mone, That troubler is, and chaungeth sone.
c. 1400. Maundev. (1839), viii. 108. Þere is a welle that iiij. sithes in the ȝeer chaungeth his colour: somtyme grene, somtyme reed, somtyme cleer, & somtyme trouble [Roxb. trublee]. Ibid., xiv. 157. The gode dyamandes … ben of trouble colour.
c. 1450. Merlin, 236. Thei loked towarde Lanneriur, and saugh the eyr trouble, and thikke of duste.
1482. Warkw., Chron. (Camden), 24. Whenne it betokenethe battayle it rennys foule and trouble watere [cf. quot. 1605 s.v. TROUBLY 1].
2. Disturbed, distressed, confused; marked by disturbance or confusion; troublous, restless, unquiet.
c. 1374. Chaucer, Boeth., IV. pr. iv. 107 (Camb. MS.). Alle thingys semen to be confus and trowble [Add. MS. trouble] to vs men. Ibid. (c. 1386), Clerk’s T., 409. With stierne face and with ful trouble cheere.
c. 1430. Pilgr. Lyf Manhode, IV. xvii. (1869), 184. Þe anguishe þat so harde presseth troubel herte.
3. Turbulent, tempestuous, stormy, violent.
c. 1374. Chaucer, Boeth., I. Met. vii. 19 (Camb. MS.). The trowble [Add. MS. trouble] wynde pat hyht Auster.
c. 1470. Henry, Wallace, VII. 182. Trubbill weddyr makis schippis to droune.
1509. Payne Evyll Marr., 95. Like perilous Caribeis of the trouble see.
Hence Troubleness, troubledness, turbidity.
c. 1380. Wyclif, Serm., Sel. Wks. II. 333. Þe wynd of Goddis lawe shulde be cleer, ffor turblenes in þis wynde mut nedis turble mennis lif.
14[?]. Beryn, 1417. Of hertis trobilnes I had nevir knowlech, but of al gladnes.
1482. Monk of Evesham (Arb.), 73. They sofryd greuys and varyante trowbulnes of the eyre.
