hoarse

play

adjective \ ˈhȯrs \

Definition of hoarse

hoarser; hoarsest

1 :rough or harsh in sound :grating

a hoarse voice

2 :having a hoarse voice

shouted himself hoarse

—

hoarsely

adverb

—

hoarseness

noun

See hoarse defined for English-language learners

See hoarse defined for kids

Examples of hoarse in a Sentence

She could only speak in a hoarse whisper.
The cold made me a little hoarse.

Recent Examples of hoarse from the Web

His voice was hoarse from straining to be heard above the hip-hop being blasted by a laptop DJ.

— ryan smith, Chicago Reader, "Beyond the ‘Bernie bro’: Socialism’s diverse new youth brigade," 23 Aug. 2017
Williams' voice was hoarse on Thursday after three days of yelling words that would make Quentin Tarantino blush.

— dan labbe, cleveland.com, "Gregg Williams is here to 'effect change' and he left his mark on the Browns offseason program," 16 June 2017
Even the golden throats had screamed themselves hoarse, cheering on the Padres from their homes or the stands.

— tom krasovic, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Wrecking ball won't destroy Q memories," 31 May 2017
Forgive Sandburg junior Jake Ostema if his voice is a little hoarse.

— logan malloy, Daily Southtown, "Sandburg stymies Marist, Brother Rice sweeps St. Rita in volleyball sectional," 26 May 2017
But his voice nearly is back to normal, after being hoarse from the bullet grazing his vocal cord area.

— donna mcguire, kansascity.com, "Ian Grillot receives hero award at Asian culture event in Olathe," 29 Apr. 2017
This week, Word conjures D.C. in the nineteen-eighties, where punks shouted themselves hoarse to carve out a new strain of rock music that spoke to their disenfranchisement.

— The New Yorker, "Word Bookstore," 31 Mar. 2017
If Rice or Jarrett had sat like this in Oval Office conservatives would have screamed themselves hoarse for weeks.

— megan friedman, Marie Claire, "People Are Furious at How Kellyanne Conway Is Sitting in This White House Photo," 1 Mar. 2017
His voice was a hoarse whisper, stubbornly projected through sheer will from deep behind his sternum.

— taffy brodesser-akner, New York Times, "Living in Andy Cohen’s America," 12 Jan. 2017

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

Origin and Etymology of hoarse

Middle English hos, hors, probably from Old Norse *hārs, hāss; akin to Old English hās hoarse, Old High German heis

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: before 12th century

See Words from the same year

hoarse Synonyms

Other Medicine Terms

analgesia, angina, diabetes, hepatitis, homeopathy, logorrhea, palliate, pandemic

HOARSE Defined for English Language Learners

hoarse

play

adjective

Definition of hoarse for English Language Learners

: having a harsh or rough sound or voice

HOARSE Defined for Kids

hoarse

play

adjective \ ˈhȯrs \

Definition of hoarse for Students

hoarser; hoarsest

1 :harsh in sound

a hoarse voice

2 :having a rough voice

I was hoarse from talking too much.

—

hoarsely

adverb

—

hoarseness

noun

Medical Dictionary

hoarse

play

adjective \ ˈhō(ə)rs, ˈhȯ(ə)rs \

medical Definition of hoarse

hoarser; hoarsest

1 :rough or harsh in sound

a hoarse voice

2 :having a hoarse voice

was hoarse from shouting

—

hoarsely

adverb

—

hoarseness

noun

Learn More about hoarse

See words that rhyme with hoarse Thesaurus: All synonyms and antonyms for hoarse Spanish Central: Translation of hoarse Nglish: Translation of hoarse for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of hoarse for Arabic speakers

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HOARSE Defined for English Language Learners

hoarse

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hoarse

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hoarsely

hoarseness

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hoarse

medical Definition of hoarse

hoarsely

hoarseness

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