hurrah
Americaninterjection
verb (used without object)
noun
-
hurrahs
plural
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an exclamation of “hurrah.”
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hubbub; commotion; fanfare.
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a colorful or tumultuous event; spectacle or celebration.
We celebrated the centennial with a three-day hurrah.
idioms
interjection
verb
Usage
What does hurrah mean? Hurrah is a word to shout when you want to celebrate something. Hurrah is an interjection, meaning it’s a term used to express emotion, often outside of a sentence. Hurrah is sometimes spelled hoorah. Similar and related words are hooray, hurray, and huzzah. All of these words are used in the same way—as a celebratory exclamation (something to shout in celebration). Hurrah started as something to shout out loud, but today it’s probably pretty rare for people to literally shout “Hurrah!” (It sounds a bit old-timey, and people are more into yelling woo! and woo-hoo!) But hurrah is still often used as an interjection in informal, conversational writing, such as social media posts and texts. To show appreciation for something in particular, you might write hurrah for followed by that thing, as in Hurrah for three-day weekends!Hurrah can be used as a verb meaning to shout hurrah or to celebrate, as in They were hurrahed for their bravery. It can also be used to refer to a cheer of hurrah (as in a big hurrah from the crowd), commotion or fanfare (as in There was much hurrah following the announcement), or a showy spectacle or celebration (as in We’ll have a big hurrah to celebrate). Hurrah is also part of the common phrase last hurrah, meaning a final attempt, competition, performance, success, or celebration before something ends, such as a career. Example: Hurrah! The package I ordered is here!
Other Word Forms
Noun Inflected Forms
Etymology
Origin of hurrah
First recorded in 1680–90; from German hurra
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:
Outward is ending after eight years, so hosts Bryan Lowder, Christina Cauterucci, and June Thomas reunited for one last hurrah.
From Slate ● Jun. 25, 2026
So the pair’s haute holiday is meant to be Deborah’s last hurrah.
From Salon ● May 29, 2026
Wendy Sloan was in Amsterdam on Thursday morning and booked an eight-hour flight to New York, fighting zero sleep to be here for Colbert's final hurrah.
From BBC ● May 22, 2026
Why the artificial-intelligence advertising spree could be the last hurrah — like the dot-coms in 2000.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 23, 2026
Turning to us the principal said: “Before we sing the customary ‘Hip! hip! hurrah!’
From "Kaffir Boy: An Autobiography" by Mark Mathabane
It was one of the last hurrahs on Highland Avenue before the fire.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 14, 2025
The baseball championship was one of their last hurrahs.
From Seattle Times ● Aug. 5, 2021
Meanwhile, elsewhere in Oz: “Excitement is building down here in Melbourne,” hurrahs Eastsidescally.
From The Guardian ● Jul. 11, 2021
Over the years, he has thrown out the ceremonial first pitch at a Mets game, dined in Manhattan’s finest restaurants and good-naturedly accepted the heckles and hurrahs from the Big Apple’s impassioned horseplayers.
From New York Times ● Jun. 2, 2021
After the song and dance it is time for the inn to close, but at this moment shouts and hurrahs are heard from without.
From Stars of the Opera by Mabel Wagnalls
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
