squeaky
Americanadjective
-
squeakier,
comparative
-
squeakiest
superlative
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Adjectives
Etymology
Origin of squeaky
Explanation
If your voice is squeaky, it's high and a little shrill, like a cartoon character. If your shoes sound squeaky when you walk, you'll never be able to sneak up on someone. It's hard for people to take you seriously if you always sound a little squeaky when you talk. Squishy, noise-making dog toys are squeaky, and so is Mickey Mouse's voice, as well as the rusty hinge on an old treasure chest. If something's squeaky clean, it's so immaculate that it squeaks a little — this phrase probably started in the 1970s in advertisements for dishwashing soap.
Vocabulary lists containing squeaky
"Raymond's Run"
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Fish in a Tree
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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:
“They took me,” Wilber said, his squeaky voice barely audible amid the static.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 17, 2026
Grabbing the mic, he launches into a squeaky falsetto version of Abba's Waterloo, followed by Tommy Cash's 2025 entry Espresso Macchiato, complete with its loose-limbed choreography.
From BBC ● May 14, 2026
Credit funds are definitely the squeaky wheel of the private-asset industry right now.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 10, 2026
You sell a house at the price you believe will benefit all siblings, not just one sibling who has mastered the art of being a squeaky wheel.
From MarketWatch ● Jan. 19, 2026
When we swirl our balloons around, they make weird, squeaky noises.
From "A Good Kind of Trouble" by Lisa Moore Ramée
Break in the basketball season at your local outdoor court before the cold sends you inside to squeakier, less-fresh-smelling courts.
From Seattle Times ● Sep. 26, 2018
Once I tried yelling my instructions in a much higher, squeakier voice than my team-mates – and they were much more likely to be obeyed.
From The Guardian ● May 20, 2013
Then she tried making a peep or two, and Janet’s chirps were even higher and squeakier than Nick’s.
From "Frindle" by Andrew Clements
My voice was much squeakier back then, like a cheese curd.
From "Darius the Great Is Not Okay" by Adib Khorram
Her voice was higher and squeakier than normal.
From "From Twinkle, with Love" by Sandhya Menon
“The few content moderators left are going to be focused on Europe, because Europe is the squeakiest wheel.”
From Seattle Times ● Dec. 13, 2022
So the result in this squeakiest of seats will answer a lot of questions about this election.
From BBC ● Nov. 19, 2019
“There’s definitely too many movies out there now, and there’s a divide between the haves and the have-nots. Unless you’re the squeakiest wheel out there, it’s going to be hard to get noticed.”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jan. 16, 2017
While Ashley I. is the squeakiest wheel, Kaitlyn’s Costco date is looking especially shabby right now.
From Time ● Jan. 26, 2015
Renee and Tyler are perched on probably the squeakiest chairs I've ever heard in a radio environment but the chat is lively and sharp.
From The Guardian ● Jun. 15, 2013
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.
