raspy
Americanadjective
-
raspier,
comparative
-
raspiest
superlative
-
harsh; grating; rasping.
-
easily annoyed; irritable.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of raspy
Explanation
A sound is raspy when it is rough or scratchy. If you get a bad cold or scream encouragement to a losing team for a few hours, you will end up with a raspy voice. A rasp is a tool, usually used by wood- or metal-workers, to scrape. Nail files and kitchen graters do the same work that a rasp does. A raspy voice sounds like it had to pass through a rasp or a grater to get out of your mouth. If you can barely speak, you might ask for water in a raspy whisper. Other sounds can seem raspy too like a dry cough, the caw of a crow or the bark of a dog that has been at it for a long time.
Vocabulary lists containing raspy
The Catcher in the Rye
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A Thousand Splendid Suns
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Orbiting Jupiter
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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:
And a fire survivor sitting nearby, his voice raspy, says he finds it all "terrifying" because "every story is the same."
From Barron's ● Jun. 25, 2026
Biden had a raspy voice, which his team said was because he was ill, and a moment where he seemed to lose his train of thought.
From BBC ● May 27, 2026
Weakened and raspy from years in suspended cryosleep, when he moans “Where am I?” it comes out “Mrregghh errgh mreeh?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 18, 2026
Sitting outside, she tells the camera in a raspy voice, “To whoever has her or knows where she is, it’s never too late.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026
She sounded raspy, as if she’d been screaming with Hibiscus, who was moaning softly in his corner of the training room.
From "Pet" by Akwaeke Emezi
And when you do that, your voice just gets raspier.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 24, 2022
Thomas was recovering from laryngitis while recording the soundtrack version and his vocals are raspier than for the track released on its own.
From Seattle Times ● May 29, 2021
His voice was lower and raspier than when he had left the White House—you can hear the difference in the video—and his lethargy worried some aides.
From Slate ● Oct. 6, 2020
In a cacophony of squeaky children at home, relatives could always distinguish Sha’Quille’s low, raspier voice.
From New York Times ● May 5, 2016
Ekon didn’t recognize his own voice; it was lower, raspier.
From "Beasts of Prey" by Ayana Gray
I needed to leave, he told me in the raspiest voice I’d ever heard.
From Slate ● Apr. 5, 2023
I spun the dials and finally concentrated on one announcer—you know who I mean—with the raspiest, most grating voice this side of a vixen file.
From Cue for Quiet by Thomas L. Sherred
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.
