bawl

[ bawl ]
See synonyms for: bawlbawling on Thesaurus.com

verb (used without object)
  1. to cry or wail lustily.

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.

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

Verb Phrases
  1. bawl out, Informal. to scold vociferously; reprimand or scold vigorously: Your father will bawl you out when he sees this mess.

Origin of bawl

1
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 bell2) with an unrecorded old root bhu-

Other words for bawl

Other words from bawl

  • bawl·er, noun
  • out·bawl, verb (used with object)

Words that may be confused with bawl

Words Nearby bawl

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

How to use bawl in a sentence

  • Sharp and lively, I mean; not bawl, and answer over your back—most part impudence, and nothing else—and then out of hearing.

    Rhoda Fleming, Complete | George Meredith

British Dictionary definitions for bawl

bawl

/ (bɔːl) /


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

  2. to shout loudly, as in anger

noun
  1. a loud shout or cry

Origin of bawl

1
C15: probably from Icelandic baula to low; related to Medieval Latin baulāre to bark, Swedish böla to low; all of imitative origin

Derived forms of bawl

  • bawler, noun
  • bawling, 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