Patter

Noun

 * 1) The soft sound of feet walking on a hard surface.
 * I could hear the patter of the burglar, so I hid in the linen closet.
 * 1) One who pats.
 * 2) Glib and rapid speech, such as from an auctioneer, or banter during a sports event.

Derived terms

 * pitter-patter

Verb

 * 1) To make irregularly repeated sounds of low-to-moderate magnitude and lower-than-average pitch.
 * The bullets pattered in the log-cabin walls.

Thesaurus
Scotch mist, act, act as foil, acting, appear, argot, babble, babbling, ballyhoo, bang, barnstorm, barrage, baste, batter, beat, beat a ruffle, beat a tattoo, beating, blab, blabber, blather, blether, blood rain, buffet, buffoonery, bump, business, cackle, cant, chaffer, characterization, chat, chatter, chink, clack, clatter, click, clink, clop, clump, clunk, colloquialize, come out, converse, crump, declaim, dither, drizzle, drub, drum, drum music, drumbeat, drumfire, drumming, dull thud, emote, emotionalize, evening mist, fall, flail, flap, flick, flump, flurry, flutter, gab, gabble, gabbling, gag, gas, get top billing, gibber, gibberish, gibble-gabble, go on, go pitapat, gobbledygook, gossip, gout of rain, gush, ham, hammer, hammy acting, haver, hoke, hokum, hot air, impersonation, jabber, jabbering, jargon, jargonize, jaw, knock, lambaste, larrup, line, lingo, maul, mime, mimesis, mimicking, mimicry, miming, mist, misty rain, mizzle, moisture, mouth, mumbo jumbo, mummery, natter, overacting, pad, palaver, palpitate, palpitation, pantomime, pantomiming, paradiddle, paste, pat, patois, pelt, perform, performance, performing, personation, phraseology, pitapat, pitch, pitter-patter, play, play the lead, playact, playacting, playing, plump, plunk, pommel, pop, portrayal, pound, pounding, pour, pour forth, pour with rain, prate, prattle, precipitate, precipitation, projection, pulsate, pulsation, pulverize, pummel, rain, rain tadpoles, raindrop, rainfall, rainwater, ramble on, rap, rat-a-tat, rat-tat, rat-tat-tat, rataplan, rattattoo, rattle, rattle on, reel off, register, representation, roll, rub-a-dub, ruff, ruffle, run on, sales pitch, sales talk, scatology, scurry, scuttle, sheet of rain, shower, shower down, sketch, skip, slang, slapstick, sledgehammer, small talk, sound a tattoo, spank, spatter, spattering, speak, spiel, spit, splatter, splutter, spout, spout off, sprinkle, sputter, staccato, stage business, stage directions, stage presence, star, steal the show, stooge, stream, stunt, taboo language, taking a role, talk, talk away, talk nonsense, talk on, tap, tat-tat, tattoo, thrash, thresh, throb, throbbing, thrum, thud, thump, thumping, tick, tinkle, tiptoe, tittle-tattle, tom-tom, tread the boards, trip, troupe, tunk, twaddle, twattle, unfrozen hydrometeor, upstage, use language, vernacular, vocabulary, vulgar language, waffle, wag the tongue, wallop, weep, wet, whip, yak, yakkety-yak

Etymology
Onomatopoeia.