tumultuous

adjective

tu·​mul·​tu·​ous tu̇-ˈməl-chə-wəs 

tyu̇-,

tə-,

-chəs;

-ˈməlch-wəs

1

: marked by tumult : loud, excited, and emotional

tumultuous applause

2

: tending or disposed to cause or incite a tumult

the laws … were violated by a tumultuous faction

—Edward Gibbon

3

: marked by violent or overwhelming turbulence or upheaval

tumultuous passions

tumultuously adverb

tumultuousness noun

Synonyms

• cataclysmal
• cataclysmic
• convulsive
• stormy
• tempestuous
• turbulent

Examples of tumultuous in a Sentence

For someone with such a tumultuous inner world, the muscular choice-is-all school of moral philosophy could not be satisfactory. —Martha C. Nussbaum, New Republic, 31 Dec. 2001

The tumultuous sensual undercurrent of the Orient had, like water in the desert, gone underground and though perhaps it bubbled up behind courtyard walls, in public places it kept out of sight. —Leila Hadley, Give Me the World, (1958) 1999

The teams walked onto the field to tumultuous applause. —J. K. Rowling, Harry Potter and the Chamber of Secrets, 1999

We were not accustomed to loran, and to pick up a buoy, as I now did with my binoculars, after thirty days of tumultuous seas, at precisely the time and angle that our charted position led us to anticipate, struck me as nothing short of miraculous. —Louis Auchincloss, "Atlantic War," in Authors at Sea, Robert Shenk, ed.,  1997

The returning astronauts were given a tumultuous welcome.

The room filled with tumultuous applause.

Recent Examples on the Web

Due in part to the tumultuous times, not a lot of contemporary records exist of Northumbria for this period. —Joshua Rapp Learn, Discover Magazine, 15 Mar. 2025

The Stoxx 600 is nonetheless heading for a second straight weekly loss as regional investors monitor tumultuous developments on transatlantic trade policies. —Chloe Taylor,sawdah Bhaimiya,jenni Reid, CNBC, 14 Mar. 2025

Following decades of steady improvement, the past year has been a tumultuous one for international development. —Jennifer Lotito, Forbes, 14 Mar. 2025

Throughout this tumultuous chapter, Majors has had someone to lean on: Meagan Good. —Regina Cho, VIBE.com, 14 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

see tumult

First Known Use

circa 1548, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

tumultuous

adjective

tu·​mul·​tu·​ous t(y)u̇-ˈməlch-(ə-)wəs 

-ˈməl-chəs

: being or suggesting a tumult

a tumultuous welcome for the astronauts

tumultuously adverb