bawl

American  

[bawl] / bɔl /

verb (used without object)

1. to cry or wail lustily.

   Synonyms:

   wail, bellow, roar, squall, yowl, howl

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verb (used with object)

1. to utter or proclaim by outcry; shout out.

   to bawl one's dissatisfaction;

   bawling his senseless ditties to the audience.

2. to offer for sale by shouting, as a hawker.

   a peddler bawling his wares.

noun

1. a loud shout; outcry.

2. a period or spell of loud crying or weeping.

3. Chiefly Midland and Western U.S. the noise made by a calf.

verb phrase

1. bawl out to scold vociferously; reprimand or scold vigorously.

   Your father will bawl you out when he sees this mess.

bawl British  

/ bɔːl /

verb

1. (intr) to utter long loud cries, as from pain or frustration; wail

2. to shout loudly, as in anger

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noun

1. a loud shout or cry

Other Word Forms

• bawler noun
• bawling noun
• outbawl verb (used with object)

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."

Example Sentences

The moment that mournful violins sound out their familiar melody, I bawl.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 28, 2024

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

Carolyn: I'm going to call her this evening and probably bawl halfway through our conversation, but she deserves to know how much she means to me.

From Washington Post • May 4, 2021

I looked over at Emma and, doggone-it-all, she was squeezing that awful doll and starting to pull her lip down and cloud her eyes up, getting ready to bawl right along with the new-free folks.

From "Elijah of Buxton" by Christopher Paul Curtis

Related Words

• holler