squeal

[ skweel ]
See synonyms for squeal on Thesaurus.com
noun
  1. a somewhat prolonged, sharp, shrill cry, as of pain, fear, or surprise.

  2. Slang.

    • an instance of informing against someone.

    • a protest or complaint; beef.

verb (used without object)
  1. to utter or emit a squeal or squealing sound.

  2. Slang.

    • to turn informer; inform.

    • to protest or complain; beef.

verb (used with object)
  1. to utter or produce with a squeal.

Origin of squeal

1
1250–1300; Middle English squelen; imitative

Other words from squeal

  • squealer, noun

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use squeal in a sentence

  • Such laughing, such squeals of delight, such cries of admiration, as were to be heard there for the next half hour!

    The Story of the Big Front Door | Mary Finley Leonard
  • It is a most lively jig, what the boys call a "regular break-down," interspersed with squeals and snickers and derisive laughter.

    A Year in the Fields | John Burroughs
  • An ear-splitting succession of squeals had issued from the dark interior of the pen, and the bear had backed off in amazement.

    The Backwoodsmen | Charles G. D. Roberts
  • A shower of little-girl squeals had greeted him as the teacher told him kindly where the boy's examination room was.

    The Memory of Mars | Raymond F. Jones
  • All at once there was a rush, a slam, a series of little rapturous squeals.

    Peggy Raymond's Vacation | Harriet L. (Harriet Lummis) Smith

British Dictionary definitions for squeal

squeal

/ (skwiːl) /


noun
  1. a high shrill yelp, as of pain

  2. a screaming sound, as of tyres when a car brakes suddenly

verb
  1. to utter a squeal or with a squeal

  2. (intr) slang to confess information about another

  1. (intr) informal, mainly British to complain or protest loudly

Origin of squeal

1
C13 squelen, of imitative origin

Derived forms of squeal

  • squealer, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012