howl

verb

ˈhau̇(-ə)l 

howled; howling; howls

intransitive verb

1

: to emit a loud sustained doleful sound characteristic of members of the dog family

2

: to cry out loudly and without restraint under strong impulse (such as pain, grief, or amusement)

3

: to go on a spree or rampage

transitive verb

1

: to utter with unrestrained outcry

2

: to drown out or cause to fail by adverse outcry

—used especially with down

howl noun

Synonyms

• bay
• keen
• ululate
• wail
• yowl

Examples of howl in a Sentence

The dogs were howling at the moon.

several coyotes began howling close by as the sun went down

Recent Examples on the Web

The crowd of 60 howled through most of the evening. —R. Daniel Foster, Forbes.com, 28 Apr. 2025

The girl howled, writhing in a dark puddle on the ground. —Maureen Lee Lenker, EW.com, 14 Apr. 2025

Now, Maegan DePriest crawls into the bed of the truck covered by a camper shell, its fiberglass skin the only barrier separating her from the howling wind outside. —Rukmini Callimachi, New York Times, 11 Apr. 2025

Seniors who don’t use computers, have no transportation or are too frail to travel to distant Social Security offices for help are howling about losing some telephone services next week. —Alexis Simendinger, The Hill, 26 Mar. 2025

Word History

Etymology

Middle English houlen; akin to Middle High German hiulen to howl

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Phrases Containing howl

• howl with laughter

Rhymes for howl

• foul
• foule
• fowl
• growl
• jowl
• owl
• prowl
• scowl
• afoul
• wildfowl
• waterfowl

Kids Definition

howl

verb

ˈhau̇(ə)l 

1

: to make a long loud mournful sound like that of a dog

2

: to cry out loudly (as with pain, grief, or amusement)

howled in protest

howling with laughter

3

: to drown out or cause to fail by an outcry

howled down the opposition

howl noun