catcall

noun cat·call \ -ˌkȯl \

|Updated on: 17 Jul 2018

Examples: catcall in a Sentence

Definition of catcall

1 : a loud or raucous cry made especially to express disapproval (as at a sports event)

Even Winslow, who led the league in catches for the second straight year, was hearing catcalls.
—Rick Reilly

2 : a loud, sexually suggestive call or comment directed at someone publicly (as on the street)

… every single time I go running in a public place without my male running partner, I am the target of catcalls.
—Natalie DeBlasio

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catcall

verb

See catcall defined for English-language learners

See catcall defined for kids

Examples of catcall in a Sentence

The pitcher heard angry catcalls as he walked off the field.
the band's sloppy playing produced only catcalls from the crowd

Recent Examples of catcall from the Web

The family has reported several other incidents of harassment in the past several months, including sporadic catcalls and hostile shouts.

— lauren lumpkin, baltimoresun.com, "Girl charged after allegedly pelting Muslim family's home with eggs," 12 July 2018
After the filibuster ended, supporters disrupted Senate proceedings — with catcalls, cheers and chants from the public gallery above the Senate floor — and prevented senators from voting on the bill before midnight.

— anna m. tinsley, star-telegram, "Five years ago, she stood in the Texas Capitol and talked for more than 11 hours. Now, what's next?," 20 June 2018
My body got lots of unwanted attention from boys — mainly comments and catcalls, and a bunch of older boys surrounding me in the back of the school bus to watch my boobs bounce as the bus driver hit every pothole on the way home from school.

— neelanjana banerjee, Teen Vogue, "Messy, Curly Hair Shaped My Identity as an Indian-American Woman," 5 June 2018
So maybe all those voices, all the insiders insisting that Heimlich will never be drafted, are wrong. Maybe some major league GM has been watching him mow down hitters in Corvallis this spring and heard that catcalls on the road have been few.

— SI.com, "Prospect and Pariah," 16 May 2018
Jersey City Mayor Steven Fulop, Polish consul general Maciej Golubiewski and members of a committee that curates the Katyn Memorial announced the agreement to catcalls and shouted epithets from a group of about three dozen protesters at City Hall.

— Washington Post, "Plans announced for moving statue marking massacre of Poles," 15 May 2018
There was a heckling audience, and catcalls at some of the Democratic candidates for governor.

— john sharp, AL.com, "How the Alabama Democratic governor's debate produced 'more fireworks' than usual," 25 Apr. 2018
Neither do their discussions of issues from Picasso to catcalls.

— tony adler, Chicago Reader, "The inchoate new MPAACT show Blood Mural misses what’s right in front of it," 25 Apr. 2018
Tafoya has been doing promotional work for Secret deodorant, with a campaign spotlighting women in the football world who've overcome the catcalls, prejudice and machismo to stand out in the field.

— USA TODAY, "For Tafoya, preparation is key going into 4th Super Bowl," 31 Jan. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'catcall.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.