roaring

1 of 3

adjective

roar·​ing ˈrȯr-iŋ 

1

: making or characterized by a sound resembling a roar : loud

roaring applause

2

: marked by prosperity especially of a temporary nature : booming

3

: great in intensity or degree

in the roaring heat

a roaring success

roaringly adverb

roaring

2 of 3

adverb

: extremely

was roaring hungry

—Herman Wouk

roaring

3 of 3

noun

: noisy inhalation in a horse especially upon exercising that is caused by paralysis and muscular atrophy of part of the larynx

Synonyms

Adjective

• blaring
• blasting
• booming
• clamorous
• clangorous
• deafening
• earsplitting
• loud
• piercing
• plangent
• resounding
• ringing
• slam-bang
• sonorous
• stentorian
• thundering
• thunderous

Adverb

• achingly
• almighty
• archly
• awful
• awfully
• badly
• beastly
• blisteringly
• bone
• colossally
• corking
• cracking
• damn
• damned
• dang
• deadly
• desperately
• eminently
• enormously
• especially
• ever
• exceedingly
• exceeding
• extra
• extremely
• fabulously
• fantastically
• far
• fiercely
• filthy
• frightfully
• full
• greatly
• heavily
• highly
• hugely
• immensely
• incredibly
• intensely
• jolly
• majorly
• mightily
• mighty
• monstrous [chiefly dialect]
• mortally
• most
• much
• particularly
• passing
• rattling
• real
• really
• right
• roaringly
• seriously
• severely
• so
• sore
• sorely
• spanking
• specially
• stinking
• such
• super
• supremely
• surpassingly
• terribly
• that
• thumping
• too
• unco
• uncommonly
• vastly
• very
• vitally
• way
• whacking
• wicked
• wildly

Examples of roaring in a Sentence

Adjective

a roaring party that annoyed the neighbors mightily

the roaring mining town attracted job seekers eager to share in the boom

Adverb

We had a roaring good time.

we had a roaring good time at the party

Recent Examples on the Web

Adjective

Tinnitus is when someone hears ringing in the ears—or a buzzing or roaring sound. —Carley Millhone, Health, 20 Oct. 2024

On her first day of filming, Ronan was thrown into a lively quickstep number in a roaring dance hall. —Patrick Ryan, USA TODAY, 3 Oct. 2024

Noun

To that, the emergence onstage at the two-and-a-half-hour mark of firefighters who battled the January blazes that destroyed much of Pacific Palisades and Altadena gave the A-lister crowd a chance to really let loose with a roaring, bipartisan standing ovation. —Dominic Patten, Deadline, 2 Mar. 2025

The party’s roaring on over at Broadway’s The Great Gatsby thanks to new stars Sarah Hyland and Ryan McCartan. —Raven Brunner, People.com, 25 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

Adjective

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Adverb

1678, in the meaning defined above

Noun

1813, in the meaning defined above

Phrases Containing roaring

• do a roaring business/trade
• rip-roaring
• roaring boy
• roaring drunk
• roaring forties
• roaring success
• roaring twenties

Rhymes for roaring

• boring
• coring
• flooring
• poring
• pouring
• scoring
• shoring
• snoring
• soaring
• storing
• warring
• whoring

Kids Definition

roaring

adjective

roar·​ing

ˈrōr-iŋ,

ˈrȯr-

: very active or strong

a roaring fire

does a roaring business

a roaring headache

Medical Definition

roaring

noun

roar·​ing -iŋ 

: noisy inhalation in a horse especially upon exercising that is caused by paralysis and muscular atrophy of part of the larynx compare grunting, thick wind