bleat
verb (used without object)
to utter the cry of a sheep, goat, or calf or a sound resembling such a cry.
were bleating
-
past progressiveof bleat.past progressive
Used to describe an ongoing action or continuous state that was happening at a specific time in the past.
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.
His night ended with him appropriately surrounded in the locker room by teammates who were bleating like goats.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 2, 2026
In the evening’s stillness, somebody’s goats were bleating, someone’s donkey braying.
From New York Times ● Jan. 19, 2023
“A few windows were lit and radios were bleating at the dusk.”
From The New Yorker ● Dec. 16, 2019
Unable to determine which one it is, Stanley, the rattled naïf, herds them together as if they were bleating sheep.
From Time ● Aug. 20, 2017
Sheep and lambs were bleating, fields behind us.
From "Black Swan Green" by David Mitchell
