boisterous merrymaking or festivity; revelry.
Often revels an occasion of merrymaking or noisy festivity with dancing, masking, etc.
(foll by in) to take pleasure or wallow
to revel in success
to take part in noisy festivities; make merry
(often plural) an occasion of noisy merrymaking
a less common word for revelry
First recorded in 1275–1325; (for the verb) Middle English revelen, from Old French reveler “to raise tumult, make merry,” from Latin rebellāre “to wage war again” ( rebel ); noun derivative of the verb
Revel means to take great pleasure. If you revel in something, you're not just pleased or even excited; you're overwhelmed by joy. It used to mean riotous merry-making. Now it means to bask in the self-reflected glow of your own pleasure. You revel in your victory lap after winning the race. Your brother is constantly on your case for being clumsy, so when he knocks down a table filled with glassware, you revel in it. Think of it as a high level of pleasure.
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Alongside hosts Daly and Winkleman, judges Shirley Ballas, Craig Revel Horwood, Motsi Mabuse, and Anton Du Beke will all be on hand - before the studio audience decides who wins.
From BBC • Dec. 24, 2025
Craig Revel Horwood, acerbic as ever, called it "flat footed", and Clarke and his partner Alexis Warr crashed out with the lowest score this evening - at 27.
From BBC • Oct. 31, 2025
Strictly Come Dancing judge Craig Revel Horwood has put down his number 10 paddle and stripped off for a fab-u-lous charity calendar.
From BBC • Oct. 30, 2025
“The times are fast but the price is steep—ask anyone who has gone down the stairs after a Revel race,” Brooksee Chief Executive Phil Dumontet said.
From The Wall Street Journal • Sep. 17, 2025
A private gentleman of Revel has also established at his own cost, near this city, a fabrique of fayence, and has obtained painters and potters from Germany.”
From The Collector's Handbook to Keramics of the Renaissance and Modern Periods by Chaffers, William
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
