bawl
Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
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to utter or proclaim by outcry; shout out.
to bawl one's dissatisfaction;
bawling his senseless ditties to the audience.
-
to offer for sale by shouting, as a hawker.
a peddler bawling his wares.
noun
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a loud shout; outcry.
-
a period or spell of loud crying or weeping.
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Chiefly Midland and Western U.S. the noise made by a calf.
verb phrase
verb
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(intr) to utter long loud cries, as from pain or frustration; wail
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to shout loudly, as in anger
noun
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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bawlsimple
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bawlssimple
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have bawledperfect
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has bawledperfect
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am bawlingprogressive
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are bawlingprogressive
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is bawlingprogressive
-
have been bawlingperfect progressive
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has been bawlingperfect progressive
Past
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bawledsimple
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had bawledperfect
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was bawlingprogressive
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were bawlingprogressive
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had been bawlingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bawl
First recorded in 1400–50; late Middle English, from Medieval Latin baulāre “to bark,” from Germanic; compare Old Norse baula “to low,” baula “cow,” perhaps a conflation of belja ( see bell 2) with an unrecorded old root bhu-
Explanation
To bawl is to weep or wail loudly. If you tend to bawl at sad movies, you might want to bring some tissues for wiping your tears and blowing your nose. If a baby bawls all night, he doesn't just cry — he sobs and howls. You can also use the verb to talk about other loud sounds, like shouts: "He bawls out orders while we stand there, confused," or even amusement: "She bawls with laughter all through the woman's strange speech." In the 15th century, to bawl was to "bark like a dog," from the Old Norse baula, "to low or moo like a cow."
Vocabulary lists containing bawl
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Stargirl
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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.
The punchline rocks the audience, who bawl with laughter, interspersed with oohing.
From Salon • Mar. 10, 2023
"In other ones, you can join in a bit but do you really have to shout and bawl and scream?" he added.
From BBC • Feb. 8, 2023
That night, Faris saw a woman near her bawl and wide-eyed grown-ups run.
From Washington Post • Jul. 21, 2021
“So many scenes, I would do it five different ways. I’m like, ‘OK, this one, we’re gonna be funny,’ and then the next one, I would bawl my eyes out.
From Los Angeles Times • Mar. 7, 2021
He needed to think, not bawl like a baby, but already his mind felt drunk and scattered.
From "Ship Breaker" by Paolo Bacigalupi
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.
