revel
verb (used without object)
to take great pleasure or delight (usually followed byin ).
revel
1 American
[rev-uhl]
/ ˈrɛv əl /
verb (used without object)
-
revels,
present (3rd person singular)
-
reveled,
past participle, past
-
revelled,
past participle, past (especially British)
-
reveling,
present participle
-
revelling
present participle (especially British)
noun
-
revels
plural
-
boisterous merrymaking or festivity; revelry.
-
Often revels an occasion of merrymaking or noisy festivity with dancing, masking, etc.
Revel
2
American
[ray-vuhl, rye-vyil]
/ ˈreɪ vəl, ˈrjɛ vjɪl /
noun
revel
British
/ ˈrɛvəl /
verb
-
(foll by in) to take pleasure or wallow
to revel in success
-
to take part in noisy festivities; make merry
noun
-
(often plural) an occasion of noisy merrymaking
-
a less common word for revelry
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
revelsimple
-
revelssimple
-
have reveledperfect
-
have revelledperfect
-
has reveledperfect
-
has revelledperfect
-
am revelingprogressive
-
am revellingprogressive
-
are revelingprogressive
-
are revellingprogressive
-
is revelingprogressive
-
is revellingprogressive
-
have been revelingperfect progressive
-
have been revellingperfect progressive
-
has been revelingperfect progressive
-
has been revellingperfect progressive
Past
-
reveledsimple
-
revelledsimple
-
had reveledperfect
-
had revelledperfect
-
was revelingprogressive
-
was revellingprogressive
-
were revelingprogressive
-
were revellingprogressive
-
had been revelingperfect progressive
-
had been revellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of revel
First recorded in 1275–1325; (for the verb) Middle English revelen, from Old French reveler “to raise tumult, make merry,” from Latin rebellāre “to wage war again” ( rebel ); noun derivative of the verb
Explanation
Revel means to take great pleasure. If you revel in something, you're not just pleased or even excited; you're overwhelmed by joy. It used to mean riotous merry-making. Now it means to bask in the self-reflected glow of your own pleasure. You revel in your victory lap after winning the race. Your brother is constantly on your case for being clumsy, so when he knocks down a table filled with glassware, you revel in it. Think of it as a high level of pleasure.
Vocabulary lists containing revel
Romeo and Juliet
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Unit 1: Telling Details
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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:
Levy added: "Always say yes to any opportunity to revel in the presence of greatness."
From BBC ● Sep. 15, 2026
In the past five years, Sanxingdui has captured the imagination of a Chinese nation eager to revel in its long history and civilizational accomplishments.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 8, 2026
She is an aesthete, someone who likes to go to the race track just to revel in the colors on display there.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2026
Once the final track has been played, “F.I.G” beckons us to replay, revel in our emotions and dance once, maybe twice or thrice, more.
From Salon ● Jun. 5, 2026
It’s easy to revel in the elegance, trust that everything will flow smoothly, like silk.
From "The Queen of Water" by Laura Resau
Another regular is Anthrax guitarist Scott Ian, a family friend whose son Revel also plays music with Shane.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 13, 2026
Dame Prue Leith, Craig Revel Horwood and Dame Mary Berry are among the celebrities to be announced in this year's line-up for the Cheltenham Literature Festival.
From BBC ● Aug. 12, 2026
Ending the day with some wordplay: Revel in the weirdness of the English language with Slate’s newest game, SoundBites!
From Slate ● Jul. 23, 2026
“The audience knows if you’re authentic or not,” says Ryan Revel, a talent manager who represents “The Challenge” alum Johnny “Bananas” Devenanzio and former “Vanderpump Rules” stars Tom Sandoval, Kristen Doute and Jax Taylor.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 8, 2026
Madame Mara passed the last years of her life at Revel, where she died, January, 1833, at the age of eighty-five.
From Famous Singers of To-day and Yesterday by Henry C. Lahee
The clunky lurch forward into fantasy is characteristic of the movie, which like many a teenager revels in creating a mess it can’t or won’t clean up.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 24, 2026
On “En Privado,” he revels in the tropical bachata-forward beat with Manuel Turizo.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 21, 2026
The film revels in languid establishing shots of the Santa Clara Valley, with the hilly Diablo Range in the background.
From Salon ● Jun. 8, 2026
The self-aware Salah appreciates his superstar status, and revels in what he stands for in both the footballing world and the Arabic world.
From BBC ● May 23, 2026
“And not even in Hay Lane, or the fields about it, could you find a trace of them. I don’t think either summer or harvest, or winter moon, will ever shine on their revels more.”
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
Navarrete reveled with one woman over her husband’s release from a detention facility.
From Los Angeles Times ● Sep. 3, 2026
Mr. Coyne, accustomed to more solitary work as a writer, reveled in the camaraderie and the sense of common purpose.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 11, 2026
“You reveled in his company. He filled you with energy and humor when you felt doubtful and weak,” said Anna Wintour, the global editorial director of Vogue and Conde Nast’s chief content officer.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 27, 2026
The orchestra, adroitly conducted by Yannick Nézet-Séguin, reveled in the otherworldly environment of the score.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026
Once she would have reveled in showing it off to all her urchin friends, and making them goggle with fear, but Will had taught her the value of silence and discretion.
From "The Amber Spyglass" by Philip Pullman
Ann Widdecombe revelled in debate, even, perhaps particularly, when articulating positions as a lifelong social conservative that were no longer fashionable to many.
From BBC ● Jul. 10, 2026
Other publications have revelled in how Sturgeon has given interviews against a backdrop of stolen books in stolen bookcases, or offered cups of coffee to journalists from a coffee machine Murrell bought with stolen money.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
Hockney lived in an unheated garden shed, spent every waking hour painting and revelled in his newfound bohemia.
From BBC ● Jun. 12, 2026
Just as in his 5-39 in the first innings, Robinson revelled in the conditions in his first Test for more two years.
From BBC ● Jun. 6, 2026
When he had departed, my kind military friend caused me to rest, sent me food, and had my clothes removed and sent me a supply of fresh water, in which I revelled.
From In the Yellow Sea by Henry Frith
He traveled as a private citizen, rather than a politician, reveling in the region’s splendors, its ruins and estates, gardens and canals.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Sep. 30, 2026
But the billionaire Republican is also reveling in the macho side of an event that will see bare-knuckle fighters battle it out in a mesh-framed cage known as the "Octagon."
From Barron's ● Jun. 12, 2026
Two years later, the Quigleys are reveling in the Sunshine State’s education freedom.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 3, 2026
A night for making history was also a night for reveling in it.
From Los Angeles Times ● Feb. 2, 2026
She flexed her toes in her little leather slippers, reveling in the familiar feel of them on her feet, bouncing on her nubbly rubber soles, fearless and eager.
From "Six of Crows" by Leigh Bardugo
Headingley gradually came to life after Tongue removed Imam, and the crowd gave home favourite Root a warm welcome before revelling in his late-evening progress.
From BBC ● Aug. 19, 2026
Marcus Willis is not one for revelling in nostalgia.
From BBC ● Jul. 1, 2026
Or maybe just revelling in the Canadian capers.
From BBC ● Feb. 21, 2026
Italy's cricketers have been revelling in plenty of "pinch me" moments during their debut appearance at the T20 World Cup, and now they want more.
From Barron's ● Feb. 17, 2026
The day ended, we are told, according to the custom of such assemblies, with dancing, masking, and revelling.
From Old Church Lore by William Andrews
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.
