holler
1 Americanverb (used without object)
verb (used with object)
noun
noun
verb
noun
Usage
What else does holler mean? To holler is "to shout," extended to "say hello" or "hit on" in Black English. In Appalachian English, a holler refers to a "hollow," or mountain valley.
Other Word Forms
Inflected Forms
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
hollersimple
-
hollerssimple
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have holleredperfect
-
has holleredperfect
-
am holleringprogressive
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are holleringprogressive
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is holleringprogressive
-
have been holleringperfect progressive
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has been holleringperfect progressive
Past
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holleredsimple
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had holleredperfect
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was holleringprogressive
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were holleringprogressive
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had been holleringperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of holler1
1690–1700, variant of holla ( see hallo)
Origin of holler2
An Americanism dating back to 1835–45
Explanation
When you holler, you yell a little too loudly and abruptly. A kid stuck in a tree might holler for help until someone shows up to help him climb down. Holler is an informal verb, useful for those times you call out or shout. Your teacher might holler at the class if she gets angry enough, and you might holler at your sister to get out of your room at least once a day. A holler can also be a dip or depression in the land, a hollow. The word dates from the 17th century, a colloquial form of hollo, a variation on hello.
Vocabulary lists containing holler
Instead of "Said": Words That Sound Like What They Mean
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"The People Could Fly," Vocabulary from the folk tale
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"The People Could Fly" by Virginia Hamilton
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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:
"But the kid inside of you wants to break out and just hoot and holler."
From Barron's ● Apr. 4, 2026
During Idioteque, guitarist Ed O'Brien catches him mid-transit, and they holler the lyrics directly to one another.
From BBC ● Nov. 21, 2025
The glorious holler of the V12—equivalent to six Italian superbikes—would make a statue of Enzo Ferrari cry.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 23, 2025
High school, college, med school, it’s all the same: You dress up, get there early, sweat in the sunshine, and holler like hell when the grad’s name gets called.
From Slate ● May 27, 2025
“I’m baking, but I’m almost done. Give me a holler when you need me,” she said.
From "The First Rule of Punk" by Celia C. Pérez
Cosby defined it to me as “books that took noir existentialism out the cities and the back and brought it down into the hills and the hollers, the low country.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Apr. 16, 2026
One of the lesser-known tragedies is the story of Gary Stewart, a bar-prowling, hard-living singer from the hollers of eastern Kentucky.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 27, 2026
But us football fans must recognize that not everyone hoots and hollers for the conversion on a long third down or a legendary pick six.
From Salon ● Sep. 15, 2025
There were heartening hollers, dramatic dashes when chances were created and applause for the application of her players throughout.
From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2025
He turns around and hollers into the house, “Dad! The writers here. ”
From "Life of Pi" by Yann Martel
The man, Marshall Wilson, 46, then hollered at Reichert, according to a memo from the Yellowstone County prosecutor’s office.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2025
Todd whooped and hollered, in no small part because he had bet a Dodgers employee that his buddy would go deep.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 27, 2025
Secretary of Defense Pete Hegseth had hollered a similar message in a warmup speech to the senior officers.
From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2025
“If I had a dollar for every time someone hollered ‘Extra Extra’ to me in the airport or something, I’d buy Warner Bros.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2025
While Georgie lay on the ground and hollered, I grabbed MacDuff’s leash and tried to pull him away.
From "The Old Willis Place" by Mary Downing Hahn
Last year, “The Minecraft Movie” had children hollering in theaters but few stakes.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 14, 2026
Fans dressed in approximations of her floaty ballgowns and 1920s flapper dresses, hollering lyrics like mantras.
From BBC ● May 2, 2026
In my head, it felt like Jackson and the other characters were there the whole time hollering, “Hurry up and get us out there!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 19, 2026
“We’re hopping and hollering in our living rooms,” Michael said, “but it’s nothing like being in person.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 27, 2026
Then more people were hollering, and there was a bank of flashing lights.
From "Red Kayak" by Priscilla Cummings
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.
