raucous

rau·cous

adjective \ˈrȯ-kəs\

Definition of RAUCOUS

1

: disagreeably harsh or strident : hoarse <raucous voices>

2

: boisterously disorderly <a …raucous frontier town — Truman Capote>

— rau·cous·ly adverb

— rau·cous·ness noun

Examples of RAUCOUS

1. <the partying neighbors kept up their raucous laughter half the night>
2. 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
3. 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
4. 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

Origin of RAUCOUS

Latin raucus hoarse; akin to Latin ravis hoarseness

First Known Use: 1769

Related to RAUCOUS

Synonyms

hell-raising, knockabout, rambunctious, boisterous, robustious, roisterous, rollicking, rowdy, rumbustious [chiefly British]

Antonyms

orderly

Related Words

callithumpian, carnival, carnivalesque, larrikin [chiefly Australian], raffish, rampageous, boisterous, riotous, rowdyish, ruffianly; stormy, tempestuous, turbulent, violent; headstrong, intractable, obstreperous, recalcitrant, uncontrollable, uncontrolled, undisciplined, ungovernable, uninhibited, unmanageable, unreserved, unrestrained, unruly, wild, willful (or wilful); bubbly, buoyant, effervescent, exuberant, high-spirited, impassioned, lively, sprightly, vivacious; clamorous, loudmouthed, noisy, openmouthed, rackety, strident, vociferous; howling, screaming, yelling

Near Antonyms

sedate, sober, solemn, somber (or sombre), staid; decorous, dignified, proper, seemly; calm, hushed, noiseless, peaceful, placid, quiet, restrained, serene, silent, soundless, tranquil; collected, composed, constrained, controlled, imperturbable, inhibited, repressed, self-controlled, unflappable, unruffled; moderate, reasonable, subdued, temperate; impassive, phlegmatic, stoic (or stoical), stolid; depressed; aloof, detached, indifferent

See Synonym Discussion at loud

Rhymes with RAUCOUS

caucus, glaucous