Dictionary.com
definitions
  • synonyms

revel

[rev-uhl]
See more synonyms for revel on Thesaurus.com
verb (used without object), rev·eled, rev·el·ing or (especially British) rev·elled, rev·el·ling.
  1. to take great pleasure or delight (usually followed by in): to revel in luxury.
  2. to make merry; indulge in boisterous festivities.
Show More
noun
  1. boisterous merrymaking or festivity; revelry.
  2. Often revels. an occasion of merrymaking or noisy festivity with dancing, masking, etc.
Show More

Origin of revel

1275–1325; (v.) Middle English revelen < Old French reveler to raise tumult, make merry < Latin rebellāre to rebel; (noun) Middle English < Old French, derivative of reveler
Related formsrev·el·er; especially British, rev·el·ler, nounrev·el·ment, nounun·rev·el·ing, adjectiveun·rev·el·ling, adjective

Synonyms

See more synonyms for on Thesaurus.com
2. celebrate, carouse, roister, caper.
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

rejoice, bask, enjoy, wallow, rollick, riot, carouse, savor, crow, relish, delight, luxuriate, gloat, indulge, lark, roister, frolic, roll, thrive

Examples from the Web for revelled

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • True child of Alsace, he revelled in local folklore and legend.

    In the Heart of Vosges

    Matilda Betham-Edwards

  • It was the sort of thing he would have revelled in three or four years earlier.

    The Portygee

    Joseph Crosby Lincoln

  • There I revelled at will amidst the wildest flights of my fancy.

    Sir Jasper Carew

    Charles James Lever

  • He revelled in the extreme purity of his heart, and he would not go back to her.

  • He revelled in his new wisdom while he sat by the man he had killed.

    Tales of Unrest

    Joseph Conrad

British Dictionary definitions for revelled

revel

verb -els, -elling or -elled or US -els, -eling or -eled (intr)
  1. (foll by in) to take pleasure or wallowto revel in success
  2. to take part in noisy festivities; make merry
Show More
noun
  1. (often plural) an occasion of noisy merrymaking
  2. a less common word for revelry
Show More
Derived Formsreveller, nounrevelment, noun

Word Origin

C14: from Old French reveler to be merry, noisy, from Latin rebellāre to revolt, rebel
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

Word Origin and History for revelled

revel

n.

late 14c., "riotous merry-making," from Old French revel "entertainment, revelry," verbal noun from reveler "be disorderly, make merry" (see revel (v.)). Related: Revels; revel-rout.

Show More

revel

v.

early 14c., "to feast in a noisy manner;" late 14c., "take part in revels," from Old French reveler, also rebeller "be disorderly, make merry; rebel, be riotous," from Latin rebellare "to rebel" (see rebel (v.)). The meaning "take great pleasure in" first recorded 1754. Related: Reveled; reveling; revelled; revelling.

Show More
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper