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:
Grunting may be the lingua franca of Bos grunniens, but they also harrumph, bellow and squeak, and calves occasionally meep.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 8, 2026
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
Being a line judge usually means being able to stand for a long period of time and, crucially, bellow out the call in a way that makes it obvious what is happening.
From BBC ● Jun. 25, 2025
Then he gently squeezes a bellow, pouring smoke into the hives of honeybees in his garden.
From Salon ● Nov. 14, 2024
But just as Longridge was gathering strength for a last bellow into the mouthpiece the line went dead.
From "The Incredible Journey" by Sheila Burnford
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
It includes portraits of three writers who played crucial and cherished roles in his life: Philip Larkin, Saul Bellow and Christopher Hitchens.
From New York Times ● May 20, 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
"Put your phone down," one of the members bellows.
From BBC ● Aug. 6, 2026
He just stops, and bellows out the word that means most to him.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
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
Aside from the pontoons, which were sewn of specially treated red silk and contained ulola gas, there was another bladder, this one under the craft, filled with air by means of a foot-pedal bellows.
From "Strange the Dreamer" by Laini Taylor
Including the fellow whose name was being bellowed.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 21, 2026
"This does not slip," bellowed an emotional Liverpool skipper after a 3-2 win at Manchester City made it 10 on the spin and put the Reds on the brink of a first title since 1990.
From BBC ● Apr. 13, 2026
"Assemble!" someone bellowed in the prison corridor, cutting through the silence.
From Barron's ● Jan. 30, 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
They bellowed and ran and mixed with the invited people—in their old loose-legged knickers and everyday clothes.
From "The Heart is a Lonely Hunter" by Carson McCullers
The payoff, after Simpson would appear in some unlikely setting, was him bellowing “You’ve been juiced!”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 2, 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
Instead of being greeted by a bellowing sea of blue, swathes of empty seats greeted the players as they emerged from the tunnel.
From BBC ● Sep. 26, 2025
He’s the in-stadium announcer who fires up the crowd by bellowing, “Whose house?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 13, 2025
As always, the air was filled with the smell of rotting whale carcasses and the sound of elephant seals bellowing and belching on the beach.
From "Shipwreck at the Bottom of the World" by Jennifer Armstrong
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.
