roar

1 of 2

verb

roared; roaring; roars

intransitive verb

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)

transitive verb

1
: to utter or proclaim with a roar
2
: to cause to roar

roar

2 of 2

noun

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

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
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Verb
But Ball – just 2-for-9 from the field in the first half – erased the deficit with a personal 5-0 flurry, making a layup through traffic and a 3-pointer from the wing that made the crowd roar. Joe Arruda, Hartford Courant, 19 Dec. 2024 The maverick says he was almost wiped out by the 1997 Asian financial crisis and again in December 2004 when a tsunami roared across many parts of Asia, killing at least 225,000 people, including guests and staff at his Anantara resort at Khao Lak, north of Phuket. Ron Gluckman, Forbes, 12 Dec. 2024
Noun
But for a few hours a day, the 4-month-old pygmy hippo springs to life, gumming on leaves, zooming around the compound and tossing her head in a silent, open-mouthed roar. Andrew J. Campa, Los Angeles Times, 1 Dec. 2024 The roars that greet Ohio State’s three-and-out to start the game double as an enormous exhale. Joe Rexrode, The Athletic, 24 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for roar 

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English roren, from Old English rārian; akin to Old High German rērēn to bleat

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1a

Noun

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of roar was before the 12th century

Cite this Entry

“Roar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/roar. Accessed 22 Dec. 2024.

Kids Definition

roar

1 of 2 verb
ˈrō(ə)r How to pronounce roar (audio)
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
ˈrōr-ər
ˈrȯr-
noun

roar

2 of 2 noun
1
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

More from Merriam-Webster on roar

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