yell
Americanverb (used without object)
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yells,
present (3rd person singular)
-
yelled,
past participle, past
-
yelling
present participle
-
to cry out or speak with a strong, loud, clear sound; shout.
He always yells when he is angry.
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to scream with pain, fright, etc.
verb (used with object)
-
yells,
present (3rd person singular)
-
yelled,
past participle, past
-
yelling
present participle
noun
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yells
plural
-
a cry uttered by yelling.
-
a cheer or shout of fixed words or syllables, as one adopted by a school or college to encourage a team.
verb
noun
-
a loud piercing inarticulate cry, as of pain, anger, or fear
-
a rhythmic cry of words or syllables, used in cheering in unison
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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yellsimple
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yellssimple
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have yelledperfect
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has yelledperfect
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am yellingprogressive
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are yellingprogressive
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is yellingprogressive
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have been yellingperfect progressive
-
has been yellingperfect progressive
Past
-
yelledsimple
-
had yelledperfect
-
was yellingprogressive
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were yellingprogressive
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had been yellingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of yell
First recorded before 1000; (for the verb) Middle English yellen, Old English gellan, giellan; cognate with German gellen to resound, Dutch gillen; akin to Old English galan “to sing” ( see nightingale); noun derivative of the verb
Explanation
To yell is to call or cry out loudly. You might yell across a loud cafeteria to get your friend's attention, or yell at your sister for borrowing your favorite sweater. Use the word yell as a verb or noun to describe the noise someone makes when they holler or shout. You can yell with enthusiasm, the way a crowd at a sporting event does, or in anger, like an irate driver yelling out the car window. A yell can express surprise, fury, or delight — but it's always loud. The Old English root is galan, "to sing."
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:
You don’t have to yell at me; like, we’re on the same side here.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 23, 2026
Weigh those cons against the things AI has reliably proven it can do – cheat on homework and write janky code – and it’s easy to understand Sanders’ urge to stand and yell “stop!”
From Salon ● Aug. 12, 2026
Santana needed to be restrained by his teammates as he continued to yell at Caballero.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
“He’s one of those guys I would yell at from the dugout.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 23, 2026
There was a shocked yell from Strong Jonn at the head of the line.
From "Rowan of Rin" by Emily Rodda
“Keep your jaw open,” someone yells, “it helps.”
From Salon ● Aug. 11, 2026
To wit, a man catcalls her as she walks past and she yells, “I object!”
From Salon ● Jul. 6, 2026
“Class of 1975,” yells someone from the crowd.
From Slate ● Jun. 24, 2026
She is amused by the memes and viral videos, particularly one in which a man yells, “Harfuch! Have a baby with my wife and I’ll raise him.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 12, 2026
The hoots and yells of the baboon troop didn’t veer off into the trees.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
According to victim and witness statements, the suspect yelled “Allahu akbar” during both attacks, said New York City Police Commissioner Jessica Tisch.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 24, 2026
Related: ‘I’ve yelled, screamed and cried’: My mother gave $400K to online scammers.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 14, 2026
Metres away, other photographers yelled instructions to ornately dressed young women who held their fingers in victory signs and arched their backs for the camera.
From Barron's ● Jul. 13, 2026
Duckett punched the air, yelled to the sky and saluted the England dressing room.
From BBC ● Jun. 26, 2026
She yelled out to two trolls who were just about my size, “Gorp! Grot! Out of the stream and into the mud!”
From "Rump: The (Fairly) True Story of Rumpelstilskin" by Liesl Shurtliff
A defense of yelling in restaurants: It’s a forbidden behavior in today’s restaurants—but Amanda Albee spoke to chefs who say it massively improved their careers.
From Slate ● Aug. 19, 2026
Today I asked the White House Correspondents’ Association whether it has guidance for what reporters should do if the president starts yelling at a colleague.
From Slate ● Aug. 18, 2026
Too many times, she said, residents of a nearby homeless encampment have partied late into the night — sometimes yelling, sometimes blasting music.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 9, 2026
“For Warsh, yelling about it but not hiking because inflation is coming down is the best of all worlds,” said Guy LeBas, chief fixed-income strategist at Janney Montgomery Scott.
From MarketWatch ● Jul. 18, 2026
I think it is the happy kind of screaming and yelling.
From "A Rover's Story" by Jasmine Warga
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.
