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

Thanks to fear of crime, the district’s raucous overnight parties have largely given way to afternoon brunches.

— andrew rosati, Bloomberg.com, "The Manhattan of Venezuela Parties Against a Backdrop of Crisis," 19 July 2017
The raucous crowd set the tone for a fiesty match between the two rival clubs, one in which referees issued 23 fouls and four yellow cards.

— danielle lerner, The Courier-Journal, "Louisville City FC crowd sets attendance record against FC Cincinnati," 15 July 2017
DDC embraces decadence with rich food, free-flowing cocktails, endless oysters, and a raucous afterparty.

— juliet bennett rylah, Los Angeles Magazine, "These Lavish Pop-Up Dinner Parties Are Hosted in Historic L.A. Homes," 10 July 2017
Jarrett, wearing a friendly tan suit, received a tremendous ovation from the raucous Impact Zone crowd, when introduced by TNA Wrestling original Jeremy Borash, who wore two hats of his own during the show.

— jim varsallone, miamiherald, "King in Lashley’s corner, Patron still wins at Slammiversary XV," 3 July 2017
Particularly given the current climate in France — its fragmented political landscape, its high unemployment rate, its heavily armed security forces walking the streets — the raucous ovation Ms. Kawakubo received was fully merited.

— guy trebay, New York Times, "American Chic on the Runways of Paris," 27 June 2017
TNT's breakout drama Animal Kingdom is back for Season 2, with the wily, raucous Cody family returning for more hijinks and crime.

— julie kosin, Harper's BAZAAR, "Ben Robson on Animal Kingdom's Intense Season 2," 26 June 2017
President Trump returned to familiar rhetorical territory during a raucous campaign-style rally in Iowa on Wednesday night, repeating exaggerations and falsehoods about health care, jobs, taxes, foreign policy and his own record.

— linda qiu, New York Times, "In One Rally, 12 Inaccurate Claims From Trump," 22 June 2017
A raucous trial resulted in a clean verdict: Miller’s tale was art, not porn.

— logan jenkins, sandiegouniontribune.com, "Harvey Furgatch: Eccentric political player was one for the books," 22 June 2017

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

NEW! Time Traveler

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