roared; roaring; roars
1
a
: to utter or emit a full loud prolonged sound
b
: to sing or shout with full force
2
a
: to make or emit a loud confused sound (such as background reverberation or rumbling)
b
: to laugh loudly
3
a
: to be boisterous or disorderly
b
: to proceed or rush with great noise or commotion
4
: to make a loud noise during inhalation (such as that of a horse affected with roaring)
1
: the deep cry of a wild animal (such as a lion)
2
: a loud deep cry (as of pain or anger)
3
: a loud continuous confused sound
the roar of the crowd
4
: a boisterous outcry
Synonyms
Examples of roar in a Sentence
Verb
We heard a lion roar in the distance.
The joke got the crowd roaring.
The crowd roared its approval.
She roared at him for being late.
Noun
the roar of the airplane engines
the roar of the river
Recent Examples on the Web
Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2024
This secretive organization, known as the United Wa State Army, has long dominated Asia’s roaring meth trade.
—Patrick Winn, Rolling Stone, 13 Apr. 2024
The Indian box office roared back post-pandemic in 2023, but mainly with a focus on spectacle films, rather than those with strong storylines.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
The shadow roared in across the lake, like some diabolical gloom or lethal wall of hail.
—Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, 9 Apr. 2024
How did 1920s fashion help to make the Roaring Twenties roar?
—Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 1 Apr. 2024
And when two of the Black women featured on the album, Brittney Spencer and Reyna Roberts, appeared onstage together, the crowd roared.
—Emily Cochrane, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
The virus was virtually absent in 2020, only to come roaring back for a bizarrely early season that began during the summer of 2021 and had mostly concluded by the end of January 2022.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 29 Mar. 2024
During the winter months, Thoreau’s serves as a particularly cozy drinking and dining destination, with a roaring fireplace and picturesque mahogany bar gracing the interior of the space.
—Jared Ranahan, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2024
Mufasa: The Lion King is coming out of the shadows and beginning to practice its roar.
—Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024
Users can also add sound effects like the roar of a crowd or keyboard taps.
—Emilia David, The Verge, 3 Apr. 2024
The roar to 60 happens in 3.2 seconds; impressive given the lack of AWD.
—Sean Evans, Robb Report, 1 Apr. 2024
In particular, the loud roars from Godzilla, Kong and other creatures in Hollow Earth are certain to jar kids who are sensitive to noise.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Whenever a batter hit the ball, the crack of his bat turned the chanting into a roar.
—John Yoon Jun Michael Park Shawn Paik, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2024
Deal with the police, called after that engine roar wakes a sleeping baby.
—Sean Evans, Robb Report, 1 Apr. 2024
Mack’s speed and improved route running were on display early, breaking off a defensive back in man coverage and toe dragging a corner route to bring one of the biggest roars of the day from Charlotte’s offensive sideline.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 26 Mar. 2024
Verb
With each Ohtani plate appearance, the appreciative crowd roars even louder.
—Bill Plaschke, Los Angeles Times, 13 Apr. 2024
This secretive organization, known as the United Wa State Army, has long dominated Asia’s roaring meth trade.
—Patrick Winn, Rolling Stone, 13 Apr. 2024
The Indian box office roared back post-pandemic in 2023, but mainly with a focus on spectacle films, rather than those with strong storylines.
—Naman Ramachandran, Variety, 11 Apr. 2024
The shadow roared in across the lake, like some diabolical gloom or lethal wall of hail.
—Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, 9 Apr. 2024
How did 1920s fashion help to make the Roaring Twenties roar?
—Lilah Ramzi, Vogue, 1 Apr. 2024
And when two of the Black women featured on the album, Brittney Spencer and Reyna Roberts, appeared onstage together, the crowd roared.
—Emily Cochrane, New York Times, 30 Mar. 2024
The virus was virtually absent in 2020, only to come roaring back for a bizarrely early season that began during the summer of 2021 and had mostly concluded by the end of January 2022.
—Katherine J. Wu, The Atlantic, 29 Mar. 2024
During the winter months, Thoreau’s serves as a particularly cozy drinking and dining destination, with a roaring fireplace and picturesque mahogany bar gracing the interior of the space.
—Jared Ranahan, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Noun
Beneath the vehicular roar in the years around 1900 was a simmering new electronic sound, native to the telephone, the phonograph, the radio, and other forms of transmission and reproduction.
—Alex Ross, The New Yorker, 15 Apr. 2024
Mufasa: The Lion King is coming out of the shadows and beginning to practice its roar.
—Pamela McClintock, The Hollywood Reporter, 11 Apr. 2024
Users can also add sound effects like the roar of a crowd or keyboard taps.
—Emilia David, The Verge, 3 Apr. 2024
The roar to 60 happens in 3.2 seconds; impressive given the lack of AWD.
—Sean Evans, Robb Report, 1 Apr. 2024
In particular, the loud roars from Godzilla, Kong and other creatures in Hollow Earth are certain to jar kids who are sensitive to noise.
—Tim Lammers, Forbes, 28 Mar. 2024
Whenever a batter hit the ball, the crack of his bat turned the chanting into a roar.
—John Yoon Jun Michael Park Shawn Paik, New York Times, 19 Mar. 2024
Deal with the police, called after that engine roar wakes a sleeping baby.
—Sean Evans, Robb Report, 1 Apr. 2024
Mack’s speed and improved route running were on display early, breaking off a defensive back in man coverage and toe dragging a corner route to bring one of the biggest roars of the day from Charlotte’s offensive sideline.
—Hunter Bailey, Charlotte Observer, 26 Mar. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'roar.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near roar
Cite this Entry
“Roar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/roar. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
roar
1 of 2 verb
ˈrō(ə)r 
ˈrȯ(ə)r
1
: to utter a long full loud sound
the lion roared
2
: to laugh loudly
3
: to say with a roar
roarer
noun
ˈrōr-ər
ˈrȯr-
roar
2 of 2 noun1
a
: the deep loud cry of a wild animal (as a lion)
b
: a loud deep cry or shout
2
: a loud confused sound
the roar of the crowd
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