1
as in wail
a crying out in grief
we had to endure the puppy's mournful howls on her first night in our house
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2
as in shout
a loud vocal expression of strong emotion
heard howls of laughter from the children watching the clown's silly antics
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3
as in roar
a violent shouting
the crowd let out a howl of protest over the referee's call
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1
2
as in to scream
to cry out loudly and emotionally
the boy howled in pain when his baby sister bit him
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of howl
The Sacramento Bee, Sacramento Bee, 26 Jan. 2025
Lynn Schmidt, better known to Kansas City Chiefs fans as Weird Wolf, has spent 25 seasons leading cheers and howling in the stands, solidifying his place as a legendary NFL superfan.
—Dominick Williams, Kansas City Star, 25 Jan. 2025
Real animal behavior, not howling at the moon, is something that maybe hasn’t been depicted: how wolves hunt and call to each other.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Jan. 2025
The force of the howling gusts sent embers flying for miles.
—Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 13 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for howl
Verb
The rain started falling, the winds started howling, and the phones started ringing.
—The Sacramento Bee, Sacramento Bee, 26 Jan. 2025
Lynn Schmidt, better known to Kansas City Chiefs fans as Weird Wolf, has spent 25 seasons leading cheers and howling in the stands, solidifying his place as a legendary NFL superfan.
—Dominick Williams, Kansas City Star, 25 Jan. 2025
Real animal behavior, not howling at the moon, is something that maybe hasn’t been depicted: how wolves hunt and call to each other.
—Brian Davids, The Hollywood Reporter, 17 Jan. 2025
The force of the howling gusts sent embers flying for miles.
—Cynthia Littleton, Variety, 13 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for howl
Recent Examples of Synonyms for howl
Noun
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Those harsh, swelling wails of warning become the film’s punctuating sonic motif — in stark contrast to the buoyant, babbling vocal interjections of Alexey Shmurak’s unexpected a cappella score, a literal chorus of humanity amid the chaos.—
Guy Lodge,
Variety,
20 Feb. 2025
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Peart also became the band’s primary lyricist, and Lee delivering Peart’s dense and philosophical lyrics with a high, piercing wail became a defining characteristic of Rush’s sound.—
Al Shipley,
SPIN,
12 Feb. 2025
Noun
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So does Ancelotti, who raises his arms and shouts at the sky.—
Guillermo Rai,
The Athletic,
16 Feb. 2025
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The love is mutual considering the 26-year-old athlete gave Burrows a shout out a few days before hitting the field at the Super Bowl.—
Elizabeth Ayoola,
Essence,
10 Feb. 2025
Noun
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And the acoustic details to amplify the roar of the crowd.—
Richard Sutcliffe,
The Athletic,
14 Feb. 2025
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Rudolph’s free-form use of onscreen effects and graphics extracts in visual form the manic contents of this inner verbal roar.—
Richard Brody,
The New Yorker,
14 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Democrats will shriek about draconian spending cuts, but the instructions the House has given are modest — really, too modest, if the goal is to change the long-run trajectory of the federal debt.—
The Editors,
National Review,
27 Feb. 2025
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No wonder, then, that every appearance on that first two-week visit by John Lennon, Paul McCartney, George Harrison and Starr was met by shrieking teenagers, signs of what became known as Beatlemania.—
Jorge L. Ortiz,
USA TODAY,
7 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Preston Turano, a veterinarian and spokesperson at Felix Cat Insurance, told Newsweek that yelling, screaming, and physical punishment should never be used when training or communicating with your cat.—
Mark Joseph,
Newsweek,
23 Feb. 2025
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Moments after an emphatic two-handed jam in the closing seconds that sealed Sherman Oaks Notre Dame’s 68-61 upset of Harvard-Westlake on Friday night in Studio City, Tyran Stokes clenched both fists, turned toward his teammates and screamed at the top of his lungs.—
Steve Galluzzo,
Los Angeles Times,
22 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Sparse piano chords, a slow-blues structure, hovering orchestral arrangements and the cry within Ledisi’s voice all hark back to Nina Simone.—
Jon Pareles,
New York Times,
21 Feb. 2025
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For example, pain cries are often loud, high-pitched and harsh to grab the attention of listeners and elicit aid.—
Katarzyna Pisanski,
Scientific American,
21 Feb. 2025
Noun
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Image As for other noise, sports-watching venues across Canada were raucous.—
Vjosa Isai,
New York Times,
22 Feb. 2025
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Critical Thinking In a world awash with data, the ability to discern signals from noise is invaluable.—
Brent Gleeson,
Forbes,
22 Feb. 2025
Verb
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Hedges will yell from the Guardians’ dugout if a catcher mishandles a pitch, poking fun at his manager, Stephen Vogt, a former catcher known more for his offense than defense.—
Ken Rosenthal,
The Athletic,
25 Feb. 2025
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Now in Season 3, another family patriarch on the verge of ruin – this time, financial – also gets yelled at on a phone call, and the person on the other end of the line is another surprise voice cameo by an Academy Award-winning supporting actor.—
Dan Heching,
CNN,
24 Feb. 2025
Articles Related to howl
Cite this Entry
“Howl.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/howl. Accessed 9 Mar. 2025.
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