roil

American  

[roil] / rɔɪl /

verb (used with object)

• roils,
  present (3rd person singular)
• roiled,
  past participle,  past
• roiling
  present participle

1. to render (water, wine, etc.) turbid by stirring up sediment.

2. to disturb or disquiet; irritate; vex.

   to be roiled by a delay.

   Synonyms:

   rile, provoke, exasperate, ruffle, fret, annoy

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verb (used without object)

• roils,
  present (3rd person singular)
• roiled,
  past participle,  past
• roiling
  present participle

1. to move or proceed turbulently.

roil British  

/ rɔɪl /

verb

1. (tr) to make (a liquid) cloudy or turbid by stirring up dregs or sediment

2. (intr) (esp of a liquid) to be agitated or disturbed

3. dialect (intr) to be noisy or boisterous

4. (tr) another word (now rare) for rile

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Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• unroiled
  adjective

Inflected Forms

Participles

• roiling
  present
• roiled
  past

Conjugated Forms

Present

• roil
  simple
• roils
  simple
• have roiled
  perfect
• has roiled
  perfect
• am roiling
  progressive
• are roiling
  progressive
• is roiling
  progressive
• have been roiling
  perfect progressive
• has been roiling
  perfect progressive

Past

• roiled
  simple
• had roiled
  perfect
• was roiling
  progressive
• were roiling
  progressive
• had been roiling
  perfect progressive

Future

• will roil
  simple
• will have roiled
  perfect
• will be roiling
  progressive
• will have been roiling
  perfect progressive

Etymology

Origin of roil

First recorded in 1580–90; origin uncertain

Explanation

To roil means to stir up or churn. A stormy ocean might roil, or even a restless crowd. The word roil is often confused with rile, which has a slightly different meaning. If you roil someone you're stirring them up but not necessarily annoying them. To rile someone is to deliberately provoke or antagonize them. Usually there's no roiling without riling. Muhammad Ali roiled much of America when he refused to be drafted for the Vietnam War.

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

roil roils roiled roiling

Such a move would further roil already skittish energy markets.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 18, 2026

Markets are getting tired of the apparent lack of progress around the U.S.-Iran peace talks and that’s creating a risk of an eventual sharp jump in oil prices, which would roil bond and stock markets.

From Barron's ● May 19, 2026

Now, however, the counterterrorism director’s role is coming back to light as hostilities roil the Middle East and heighten the risk of attacks in the United States or against American interests or allies overseas.

From Salon ● Apr. 22, 2026

The longer the strait remains closed, the more it will roil the global economy and boost gas prices.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 31, 2026

On such a trip as mine, so much there is to see and to think about that event and thought set down as they occurred would roil and stir like a slow-cooking minestrone.

From "Travels with Charley in Search of America" by John Steinbeck

What Whitehead dubs the “churn” roils the city and his protagonist.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 20, 2026

“It roils the markets,” he said, adding that it unsettles both investors and the legal framework surrounding the Fed.

From Barron's ● Jan. 12, 2026

Lucas benefits from both Menzies’ natural reserve and his ability to show what roils beneath that stoicism, a game of emotive hide-and-seek.

From New York Times ● Feb. 15, 2024

But today, the outflow roils in a pink froth, like a cauldron of Pepto Bismol.

From Science Magazine ● Nov. 30, 2023

Something pretty bad is on its way because with each step Tatica takes, the pain roils in her gut, trouble coming to full term.

From "How the García Girls Lost Their Accents" by Julia Alvarez

Controversy surrounding data center construction has roiled Texas in recent months, fostering a bipartisan coalition of opposition, particularly among rural and suburban residents.

From Salon ● Aug. 3, 2026

The two largest energy companies in the U.S. cashed in as the worst oil-supply crunch in history roiled energy markets.

From MarketWatch ● Jul. 31, 2026

CBS News has been roiled since shortly after the Ellisons acquired Paramount in August, and installed Bari Weiss as editor in chief of CBS News.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 25, 2026

Sixth Street is investing $143 million in Chronograph as the portfolio-monitoring company expands into private credit—where investors’ fears over valuations and threats from artificial intelligence have roiled markets and driven wave after wave of redemptions.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 16, 2026

Whitecaps roiled among the capsized boats and caused them and the docks to surge and roll, and the tops of the cabins and drum reels and gunnels were loaded down with snow.

From "Snow Falling on Cedars: A Novel" by David Guterson

The insects protect their queen, collecting in a roiling, humming mass on his hand.

From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 14, 2026

But that construction boom isn’t the only factor—and the fallout from this supply squeeze is roiling every corner of the global economy, from stock markets to manufacturing capacity to trade relations.

From Slate ● Jul. 2, 2026

Iran has renewed its warnings over the Strait of Hormuz, a vital waterway for oil and gas transport which it has essentially closed since early in the war, roiling global energy markets.

From Barron's ● Jun. 11, 2026

In the most commanding painting of this section, Jeong Seon’s “Clearing After Rain on Mt. Inwang” from 1751, roiling clusters of dark hills are split by hidden ravines and jutting waterfalls.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 6, 2026

Of course the last thing I want is for her to be anything but happy, so now I can feel a wave of crap-l-have-to-fix-it word vomit roiling in my gut.

From "Odd One Out" by Nic Stone

Related Words

• muddy
• rile
• stir