: a state of commotion, excitement, or violent disturbance
Examples of uproar in a Sentence
There was a lot of public uproar over the proposed jail.
There have been uproars in the past over similar proposals.
The proposal caused an uproar.
The town was in an uproar over the proposal to build a jail.
Recent Examples on the Web
Israel is pausing military action in a humanitarian area along the coast of Gaza for 10 hours at a time and increasing aid drops after uproar over the reports and images of starving Palestinians.
—
Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 29 July 2025
Maryland State Police said Monday that troopers can attend an upcoming conference for Black law enforcement, after uproar over a new agency policy that would keep employees from attending such events.
—Dan Belson, Baltimore Sun, 29 July 2025
Amid the uproar, Tesla cars and Tesla property have been targeted in protests against Musk's right-wing activism.
—Theo Burman, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 July 2025
The video has caused an uproar in Pakistan, where honor killings, done in the name of restoring the dignity of families and the community, are still fairly prevalent, especially in rural areas.
—Mushtaq Yusufzai, NBC news, 22 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for uproar
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Rebecca Morin, USA Today, 29 July 2025
Maryland State Police said Monday that troopers can attend an upcoming conference for Black law enforcement, after uproar over a new agency policy that would keep employees from attending such events.
—Dan Belson, Baltimore Sun, 29 July 2025
Amid the uproar, Tesla cars and Tesla property have been targeted in protests against Musk's right-wing activism.
—Theo Burman, MSNBC Newsweek, 24 July 2025
The video has caused an uproar in Pakistan, where honor killings, done in the name of restoring the dignity of families and the community, are still fairly prevalent, especially in rural areas.
—Mushtaq Yusufzai, NBC news, 22 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for uproar
Cite this Entry
“Uproar.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/uproar. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
uproar
noun
up·roar
ˈəp-ˌrō(ə)r 
-ˌrȯ(ə)r
: a state of commotion, excitement, or violent disturbance
Etymology
from Dutch oproer "revolt, uprising," from op "up" and roer "motion"; the English spelling and meaning influenced by the similarity of the English roar to Dutch roer
Word Origin
The -roar part of the word uproar has no connection with the sounds made by some animals and crowds. The first use of uproar was as the translation of the Dutch word oproer, meaning "uprising, rebellion, revolt." Thus, the first meaning of uproar was the same as the Dutch meaning of oproer. Nowadays, this sense of uproar is no longer used. Because people thought that the roar of uproar referred to loud cries and sounds, they began to use the word to mean "a noisy disturbance or commotion." This is the sense of uproar that has survived.
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