as in to shriek
to cry out loudly and emotionally
the toddler screeched in anger when her stuffed rabbit was taken away
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of screech
Kase Wickman, Vanity Fair, 1 Mar. 2026
Probably some screeching guitar solos, a thunderous set from the drummer, all while the lead singer is handling everything in between?
—Kansas City Star, 21 Feb. 2026
Dallas Morning News, 14 Jan. 2026
This not-quite-title song, which is nearly eight minutes long, is a sort of mini-suite, opening with a dog barking, giving way to an acoustic-guitar melody accompanying polyphonic vocals, then becoming electric and crashingly alive, until the relentless screech of a guitar drags you to the end.
—Hanif Abdurraqib, New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for screech
Verb
Case in point was the sketch that brought Storrie and Williams back together, as the studio audience screeched.
—Kase Wickman, Vanity Fair, 1 Mar. 2026
Probably some screeching guitar solos, a thunderous set from the drummer, all while the lead singer is handling everything in between?
—Kansas City Star, 21 Feb. 2026
Noun
Plumes of tear gas, bursts of chemical irritants and the screech of protest whistles have become common on the streets of Minneapolis, especially since Good’s shooting.
—Dallas Morning News, 14 Jan. 2026
This not-quite-title song, which is nearly eight minutes long, is a sort of mini-suite, opening with a dog barking, giving way to an acoustic-guitar melody accompanying polyphonic vocals, then becoming electric and crashingly alive, until the relentless screech of a guitar drags you to the end.
—Hanif Abdurraqib, New Yorker, 18 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for screech
Recent Examples of Synonyms for screech
Verb
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With few exceptions, all the other students had shrieked in fear and had, from then on, called her gross-out or bug-girl.—
María Ospina,
The Dial,
31 Mar. 2026
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The finale is an ambiguous mix of jollity and agitation, with a piccolo shrieking above a militant march.—
Scott Cantrell,
Dallas Morning News,
6 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Once inside, however, the miscreant sister communicates (via walkie-talkie) in a squeal of wordless agony.—
Dennis Harvey,
Variety,
14 Mar. 2026
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Mary Lattimore’s harp spangles the background, while Camille Getz drags her violin across the track, a clever acoustic rendering of a classic shoegaze guitar squeal.—
Sadie Sartini Garner,
Pitchfork,
11 Mar. 2026
Verb
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For families This hotel doesn’t scream family-friendly and there’s no kids’ menu in the restaurants.—
Condé Nast,
Condé Nast Traveler,
1 Apr. 2026
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Martens plans to scream, if not louder, than with more originality.—
Rachel Tashjian,
CNN Money,
1 Apr. 2026
Noun
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He was missed — especially vocally — since Gill’s angelic voice does not, in any way shape or form, resemble Walsh’s charmingly out-of-pitch squawk-talk style.—
Jim Harrington,
Mercury News,
25 Jan. 2026
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Toy keyboard plinks and saxophone squawks spiral over a booming racket of drums in the ether, slyly threatening to collapse, like an elaborate plate-spinning act.—
H.D. Angel,
Pitchfork,
7 Jan. 2026
Noun
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The same phenomenon happens with police sirens, ambulance alarms, or the roar of an airplane.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
3 Apr. 2026
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Records say the sound created a deafening roar across Copenhagen.—
CBS News,
CBS News,
2 Apr. 2026
Noun
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Contributor DaVonne Onassis Bacchus tested it for us and had only positives to share, from the delivery and setup to the sturdy, squeak-free silhouette.—
Erika Owen,
Architectural Digest,
13 Mar. 2026
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On his proper introduction, Nett seems keen to fashion himself in the mold of new-wave rage stars like Che and Osamason, burning his low-end to a crisp and putting on his best Keef squeak.—
Hattie Lindert,
Pitchfork,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
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The natural world is a cacophony of squawks, screeches, coos, chirps, whinnies, grunts, growls, and more.—
Jackie Flynn Mogensen,
Scientific American,
19 Mar. 2026
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The pair began to exchange words early in the second half, cracking the type of crooked smiles that hardly concealed the competitiveness driving both players to chirp and ridicule and needle one another on both ends of the court.—
Julia Poe,
Chicago Tribune,
13 Mar. 2026
Noun
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On the floor, hundreds of people convulse to Blanco Teta’s ravenous yowls and monster-truck basslines off their July album La debacle de las divas.—
Kieran Press-Reynolds,
Pitchfork,
18 Feb. 2026
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Now fans can get a closer look at the man behind the pitch-perfect yowl, the pencil mustache and the flawless pompadour.—
Theater Critic,
San Francisco Chronicle,
3 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Screech.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/screech. Accessed 6 Apr. 2026.
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