raucous

adjective

rau·​cous ˈrȯ-kəs How to pronounce raucous (audio)
1
: disagreeably harsh or strident : hoarse
raucous voices
2
: boisterously disorderly
a … raucous frontier townTruman Capote
raucously adverb
raucousness noun
Choose the Right Synonym for raucous

loud, stentorian, earsplitting, raucous, strident mean marked by intensity or volume of sound.

loud applies to any volume above normal and may suggest undue vehemence or obtrusiveness.

loud shouts of protest

stentorian implies great power and range.

an actor with a stentorian voice

earsplitting implies loudness that is physically discomforting.

the earsplitting sound of a siren

raucous implies a loud harsh grating tone, especially of voice, and may suggest rowdiness.

the raucous shouts of drunken revelers

strident implies a rasping discordant but insistent quality, especially of voice.

the strident voices of hecklers

Examples of raucous in a Sentence

He stepped over one man, avoided a raucous group of inebriated merchant seamen staggering for their boats, ran up his steps into the large foyer … James Clavell, Gai-Jin, 1994
The scene was reminiscent of a college fraternity reunion, with plenty of backslapping, joking, hugging and raucous laughter. Lewis Beale, Chicago Tribune, 15 Feb. 1987
On the ledge of rock above this strange couple there stood three solemn buzzards, who, at the sight of the new comers uttered raucous screams of disappointment and flapped sullenly away. Arthur Conan Doyle, A Study in Scarlet, 1887
the partying neighbors kept up their raucous laughter half the night
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.
In any event Marshall, a craven idiot, is a raucous, vulgar sendup of the bedrock American principle of Manifest Destiny. Tom Gliatto, People.com, 7 Mar. 2025 Pedro Pascal, Ben Mendelsohn and Jay Ellis co star in this raucous LSD-like trip from two filmmakers who know this turf and that era ever so well – Ryan Fleck and Anna Boden. Randy Myers, The Mercury News, 7 Mar. 2025 It was pieced together chaotically, merging song snippets by Anderson and guitarist Steve Howe, adding bits of a raucous group jam for an intro that kicks off with the sounds of water and chirping birds, then erupts into psychedelic rock at the speed of light. Ernesto Lechner, Rolling Stone, 6 Mar. 2025 Millions of tourists and locals bedecked in beads, costumes and purple, yellow and green flocked to New Orleans to revel in raucous Fat Tuesday festivities, including iconic parades, music and food. Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 4 Mar. 2025 See All Example Sentences for raucous

Word History

Etymology

Latin raucus hoarse; akin to Latin ravis hoarseness

First Known Use

1769, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of raucous was in 1769

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Raucous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/raucous. Accessed 13 Mar. 2025.

Kids Definition

raucous

adjective
rau·​cous ˈrȯ-kəs How to pronounce raucous (audio)
1
: being harsh and unpleasant
a raucous voice
2
: behaving in a rough and noisy way
a raucous crowd
raucously adverb
raucousness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on raucous

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