bellow
verb (used without object)
to emit a hollow, loud, animal cry, as a bull or cow.
bellow
1 American
[bel-oh]
/ ˈbɛl oʊ /
verb (used without object)
-
bellows,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bellowed,
past participle, past
-
bellowing
present participle
-
to emit a hollow, loud, animal cry, as a bull or cow.
-
to roar; bawl.
bellowing with rage.
verb (used with object)
-
bellows,
present (3rd person singular)
-
bellowed,
past participle, past
-
bellowing
present participle
noun
-
bellows
plural
Bellow
2
American
[bel-oh]
/ ˈbɛl oʊ /
noun
bellow
1
British
/ ˈbɛləʊ /
verb
-
(intr) to make a loud deep raucous cry like that of a bull; roar
-
to shout (something) unrestrainedly, as in anger or pain; bawl
noun
-
the characteristic noise of a bull
-
a loud deep sound, as of pain or anger
Bellow
2
British
/ ˈbɛləʊ /
noun
Synonym Usage
See cry.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
bellowsimple
-
bellowssimple
-
have bellowedperfect
-
has bellowedperfect
-
am bellowingprogressive
-
are bellowingprogressive
-
is bellowingprogressive
-
have been bellowingperfect progressive
-
has been bellowingperfect progressive
Past
-
bellowedsimple
-
had bellowedperfect
-
was bellowingprogressive
-
were bellowingprogressive
-
had been bellowingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of bellow
before 1000; Middle English belwen, akin to Old English bylgan to roar (compare for the vowel Old High German bullôn ); extended form akin to bell 2
Explanation
To bellow is to shout in a deep, angry voice. If you constantly bellow at other drivers on the road, consider signing up for anger management classes. Bellow comes from Middle English, and means "to roar like a bull." A cow's deep moo is called a low, so bellow just adds a big angry bull to the standard moo. We use bellow for human speech that has that angry power of a loud bovine, or for any loud, threatening noise. It can be a noun, as in the bellow of the thundercloud, or a verb, as when you bellow at your kid brother.
Vocabulary lists containing bellow
Instead of "Said": Vexed Verbiage to Express Anger
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"The Great Gatsby," Chapter 1 Vocabulary
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Where the Red Fern Grows
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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.
See Examples For:
The true artist must be the voice of opposition, of negativity, and should bellow “No! in thunder”—the phrase is Melville’s—to the easy affirmations of our complacent society.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 22, 2026
For TV producers, it's long been tempting to invite two self-righteous zealots into a studio to bellow at each other.
From BBC ● Mar. 7, 2026
Then he gently squeezes a bellow, pouring smoke into the hives of honeybees in his garden.
From Salon ● Nov. 14, 2024
From the cricket’s chirp to the bullfrog’s bellow, you might think that nature is awash in music.
From National Geographic ● Feb. 14, 2024
Bellow on bellow, his voice mounted, with scarce interval for breath.
From "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner
In a 2002 speech at the American Enterprise Institute, he summed up his outlook by recalling a line uttered by an aunt of Saul Bellow.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 17, 2025
Author Saul Bellow, leaders of the Underground Railroad and high-definition images from the James Webb Space Telescope highlight the 2024 stamp-issuing program of the U.S.
From Washington Times ● Oct. 23, 2023
Of the author, Jonathan Eig, Garner writes that he has a “clean, clear, journalistic voice, one that employs facts the way Saul Bellow said they should be employed, each a wire that sends a current.”
From New York Times ● May 13, 2023
Viewers Sharon Bagozzi of Virginia Beach, Virginia, is thankful for an episode with actor Tajh Bellow, who spoke about having ADHD, attention-deficit/hyperactivity disorder.
From Seattle Times ● Feb. 16, 2023
Bellow on bellow, his voice mounted, with scarce interval for breath.
From "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner
The domineering Sarastro, an all-powerful priest, bellows spiritual profundities.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 5, 2026
It’s 6 a.m., and he bellows for me.
From Slate ● May 10, 2026
“Joyful bellows from the fans,” the Chicago Tribune reported the next morning, “drowned out the final horn.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 24, 2026
Trombones bleat, a tuba bellows, drums are the heart.
From Salon ● Nov. 8, 2025
She played vigorously, pulling out the stops with a flourish and treading away like mad on the bellows pedal while Harry turned the pages.
From "The Evolution of Calpurnia Tate" by Jacqueline Kelly
Glowing in their victories, Hegseth bellowed, “Can you believe I just started a war?”
From Los Angeles Times ● May 10, 2026
"Assemble!" someone bellowed in the prison corridor, cutting through the silence.
From Barron's ● Jan. 30, 2026
“Purdue sucks!” he bellowed to thunderous applause, “So does Michigan and Ohio State!”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 20, 2026
“The handcuffs that you’re carrying, they’re not on you anymore. They’re on the criminals,” Miller bellowed as he stood in an East Memphis warehouse, flanked by Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth and U.S.
From Salon ● Nov. 4, 2025
He could no longer see her as he cupped his hands around his mouth and bellowed Briony’s name.
From "Atonement" by Ian McEwan
When the legendary frontman begins to sing, Mr. Jagger sounds enormous, bellowing with his full range while remaining in key.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 14, 2026
While he said he hasn’t been among those bellowing that oil was headed to $200 a barrel, he didn’t sell any of his positions either.
From MarketWatch ● Jun. 17, 2026
At one point in the film, a junior official points out that U.S. interceptors have failed almost half their tests, and the secretary of defense responds by bellowing: “That’s what $50 billion buys us?”
From Salon ● Nov. 27, 2025
Where would Eurovision be without a raven-haired woman bellowing into a wind machine set to "hurricane"?
From BBC ● May 9, 2025
Suddenly he wept, a slow bellowing sound, meaningless and sustained.
From "The Sound and the Fury" by William Faulkner
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.
