howler

[ hou-ler ]
/ ˈhaʊ lər /
SEE SYNONYMS FOR howler ON THESAURUS.COM

noun

a person, animal, or thing that howls.
Also called howler monkey. any large, prehensile-tailed tropical American monkey of the genus Alouatta, the males of which make a howling noise: some species are endangered.
a mistake, especially an embarrassing one in speech or writing, that evokes laughter; a very humorous mistake or a funny blunder.
Informal. something that makes a piercing and often prolonged noise, as an alarm.

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Origin of howler

First recorded in 1790–1800; howl + -er1

Words nearby howler

howitzer, howk, howl, howl down, howland island, howler, howlet, howlin' wolf, howling, howling success, howlround
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2020

Words related to howler

deception, defect, exaggeration, blunder, lapse, misstep, mistake, goof, fault, indiscretion, blooper, inaccuracy, error, gaffe, oversight, flaw, omission, miscue, glitch, misunderstanding

Example sentences from the Web for howler

British Dictionary definitions for howler

howler
/ (ˈhaʊlə) /

noun

Also called: howler monkey any large New World monkey of the genus Alouatta, inhabiting tropical forests in South America and having a loud howling cry
informal a glaring mistake
British (formerly) a device that produces a loud tone in a telephone receiver to attract attention when the receiver is incorrectly replaced
a person or thing that howls
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