guttural

adjective

gut·​tur·​al ˈgə-tə-rəl 

ˈgə-trəl

1

: articulated in the throat

guttural sounds

2

: velar

3

: being or marked by utterance that is strange, unpleasant, or disagreeable

guttural noun

gutturalism

ˈgə-tə-rə-ˌli-zəm 

ˈgə-trə-

noun

Did you know?

Get your mind out of the gutter. Despite appearances, guttural is not related to the English word gutter; that word comes ultimately from the Latin verb gutta, meaning “drop,” while guttural has a different Latin root: the noun guttur, meaning “throat.” Since the late 1500s guttural has been used to describe sounds that are formed or pronounced in the throat, from cries and sobs to howls and grunts. A second sense, describing sounds or utterances which strike the listener as harsh or disagreeable (as in “the guttural roar of a motorcycle engine disturbed the afternoon’s quiet”) followed. A new sense appears to be developing as well, describing things that are instinctively or deeply felt irrespective of grunts or noises from the throat, as in “a guttural response/reaction,” but this sense has yet to meet the criteria for inclusion in our dictionary.

Examples of guttural in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web

The White House Historical Association says that Jackson, supposedly lying in his bed in the Rose Room, lets out a guttural laugh that has been heard in the White House since the 1860s. —James Powel, USA Today, 24 Oct. 2025

Imagine a city street at dusk, silent save for the rising sound of a collective guttural moan. —Tom Duszynski, The Conversation, 16 Oct. 2025

The mangrove forests resounded with birdsong: the high trill of swallows and the guttural croak of snail kites. —Simon Willis, Travel + Leisure, 5 Oct. 2025

Picture a night in Ibiza where melodies provide the ecstasy and the instrument is Twigs’ multifaceted voice, defying register in shifting from a whispery soprano to guttural pulses in the most surprising of ways. —Shirley Halperin, HollywoodReporter, 1 Oct. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle French, probably from Medieval Latin gutturalis, from Latin guttur throat

First Known Use

1594, in the meaning defined at sense 1

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Kids Definition

guttural

adjective

gut·​tur·​al ˈgət-ə-rəl 

1

: formed or pronounced in the throat

guttural sounds

2

: formed with the back of the tongue touching or near the palate

guttural noun

gutturally

-rə-lē

adverb

Medical Definition

guttural

adjective

gut·​tur·​al ˈgət-ə-rəl, ˈgə-trəl 

: of or relating to the throat