yodel

American  

[yohd-l] / ˈyoʊd l /

Sometimes yodle

verb (used with or without object)

yodeled, yodeling, yodelled, yodelling

1. to sing with frequent changes from the ordinary voice to falsetto and back again, in the manner of Swiss and Tyrolean mountaineers.

2. to call or shout in a similar fashion.

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noun

1. a song, refrain, etc., so sung.

2. a call or shout so uttered.

yodel British  

/ ˈjəʊdəl /

noun

1. an effect produced in singing by an abrupt change of register from the chest voice to falsetto, esp in popular folk songs of the Swiss Alps

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verb

1. to sing (a song) in which a yodel is used

Other Word Forms

• yodeler noun
• yodeller noun

Etymology

Origin of yodel

First recorded in 1835–40, from southern German dialect jodeln, from jo, an exclamation

Example Sentences

As I crooned “I’ll Never Get Out of this World Alive” along with Hank Williams, I added a little yodel.

From The Wall Street Journal

It can elegantly vault octaves, scoop notes without a croaky glottal fry and crack words into multi-note, velvety yodels.

From Los Angeles Times

Here, it was pure joy to watch HORA’s actors embrace their inner hobbits, dwarves, wizards, orcs and elves — including one that yodels!

From New York Times

Burnett and her Tarzan yodel returned to series TV for the first time in decades with the recent arrival of Netflix’s “A Little Help With Carol Burnett.”

From Los Angeles Times

A rooster, or maybe two, yodeled somewhere out of sight.

From New York Times