aloud
Americanadverb
-
with the normal tone and volume of the speaking voice, as distinguished from whisperingly.
They could not speak aloud in the library.
-
vocally, as distinguished from mentally.
He read the book aloud.
-
with a loud voice; loudly.
to cry aloud in grief.
adverb
-
in a normal voice; not in a whisper
-
in a spoken voice; not silently
-
archaic in a loud voice
Etymology
Origin of aloud
Explanation
If you read something aloud you use your voice, not just your eyes. You might feel shy reading your poems aloud in front of strangers. Aloud used to mean "very loudly," but now we use it to mean "speaking voice" as opposed to the silent voice of our thoughts. You might have to read something aloud to your grandmother if she's having trouble with her eyes. If you accidentally said something that you meant to keep to yourself, you were thinking aloud. If something is terribly painful, you might cry aloud — unable to contain yourself.
Vocabulary lists containing aloud
Commonly Confused Words, List 3
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Commonly Confused Words, List 6
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Commonly Confused Words, List 8
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
As they craft, artisans chant aloud the design code handwritten on a strip of paper known as talim -- shorthand of ancient symbols for numbers and colours -- knotting the threads string by string.
From Barron's ● Aug. 27, 2026
For people of the distant past, words on the page were there to be read aloud.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 14, 2026
Before the service began, a worshiper read aloud the names of some 200 parishioners who perished.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026
Watching from the gallery were several detectives from the LAPD’s Robbery-Homicide Division and Halem’s sister, who wiped tears from her eyes as the sentence was read aloud.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 4, 2026
All this time, all the talk of judges and lawyers, and he had not said aloud what he’d done.
From "Not Nothing" by Gayle Forman
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.
