Definition of RAUCOUS

Examples of raucous in a Sentence

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
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
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
the partying neighbors kept up their raucous laughter half the night

Recent Examples of raucous from the Web

Seven months since the tightest federal race in the country made Rep. Darrell Issa the most vulnerable member of Congress, the Vista Republican headed to a stronghold of his district for another raucous town hall meeting Saturday.

— joshua stewart, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Hundreds of constituents grill Issa at Orange County town hall", 3 June 2017
Buoyed by a raucous hometown crowd, the reappearance of a confident Pekka Rinne, and offensive contributions from their third and fourth lines, the Nashville Predators had a decisive 5-1 win over the Pittsburgh Penguins on Saturday night.

— hemal jhaveri, For The Win, "P.K. Subban on what Sidney Crosby said after Game 3: ‘He told me my breath smelled’", 3 June 2017
The Cavs were blown out by Golden State in Game 1 of the NBA Finals on Thursday night, much to the delight of a raucous Warriors crowd — and to the chagrin of Rihanna, chirping and pointing from her courtside seat and again backstage after the game.

— mike anthony, courant.com, "On The Fly: Rihanna, Like All Cavs' Fans, Disappointed In Game 1", 2 June 2017
Mr. Gorin, speaking at a news conference with Ms. Griffin that had several raucous moments, argued that the investigation should not have been initiated.

— sopan deb, New York Times, "Kathy Griffin Is Being Investigated by the Secret Service, Her Lawyers Say", 2 June 2017
His town hall meeting in Covington Wednesday (May 31) was hardly as raucous as that February gathering in Metairie, but the capacity crowd nonetheless came with pointed questions, mostly about health care.

— bob warren, NOLA.com, "Sen. Bill Cassidy gets earful from constituents in Covington town hall", 31 May 2017
Wednesday’s forum was more sedate than a raucous one in February in the New Orleans suburb of Metairie.

— kevin mcgill | ap, Washington Post, "Sen. Cassidy’s health care alternative jeered at town hall", 31 May 2017
Sacramento will also be represented in this raucous mix with sets by The Losin’ Streaks and FM Knives.

— chris macias, sacbee, "The 6 summer music festivals you shouldn’t miss in Northern California", 30 May 2017
But over the course of a raucous century, Irvine goes downhill.

— joel garreau, WIRED, "Edgier Cities", 1 Dec. 1995

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

Origin and Etymology of raucous

Latin raucus hoarse; akin to Latin ravis hoarseness

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First Known Use: 1769

See Words from the same year

raucous Synonyms

Synonym Discussion of raucous

loud, stentorian, earsplitting, raucous, strident mean marked by intensity or volume of sound. loud applies to any volume above normal and may suggest undue vehemence or obtrusiveness. loud shouts of protest stentorian implies great power and range. an actor with a stentorian voice earsplitting implies loudness that is physically discomforting. the earsplitting sound of a siren raucous implies a loud harsh grating tone, especially of voice, and may suggest rowdiness. the raucous shouts of drunken revelers strident implies a rasping discordant but insistent quality, especially of voice. the strident voices of hecklers

raucous

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