1
a
: a violent public disorder
specifically
: a tumultuous disturbance of the public peace by three or more persons assembled together and acting with a common intent
b
: public violence, tumult, or disorder
2
: a random or disorderly profusion
the woods were a riot of color
3
: one that is wildly amusing
the new comedy is a riot
4
archaic
a
: profligate behavior : debauchery
b
: unrestrained revelry
c
: noise, uproar, or disturbance made by revelers
rioted; rioting; riots
rioter
noun
Synonyms
Examples of riot in a Sentence
Noun
The news about the election caused a riot in the city.
A lot of property was damaged in the recent riots.
The woods are a riot of color in the autumn.
The movie was an absolute riot.
Verb
Students rioted after their team lost the football game.
Recent Examples on the Web
Hanna Ziady, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
As a justice, de Moraes has ordered investigations into former President Jair Bolsonaro and his involvement with the post-election capitol riots in Brasilia last year.
—Chad De Guzman, TIME, 8 Apr. 2024
An Independence Capitol riot defendant listed as a fugitive since late January after failing to show up for a probation violation hearing in Washington, D.C., has been arrested.
—Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2024
Take, for example, the kaleidoscopic riot of flavors in the Buss Up Shut Roti Plate at HAAM, a Caribbean restaurant that opened in Williamsburg last fall.
—Helen Rosner, The New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2024
Immigrant in case had no criminal history with a firearm
The Real Raw News post refers to an immigrant named Heriberto Carbajal-Flores who fired seven shots with a handgun while guarding a business amid riots that followed George Floyd's death in June 2020.
—USA TODAY, 29 Mar. 2024
Tennessee’s law was repealed six years later, after a string of riots in the state’s overcrowded prisons.
—ProPublica, 28 Mar. 2024
The 2012 London Games was dominated by fears that the city would be overrun by riots that broke out the previous summer.
—Alexander Smith, NBC News, 26 Mar. 2024
The state created the California FAIR Plan in the 1960s in response to insurers refusing to cover inner-city businesses following riots in Los Angeles’ Watts neighborhood.
—John Woolfolk, The Mercury News, 23 Mar. 2024
Bret Stephens, The Mercury News, 9 Apr. 2024
After Bolsonaro lost the election by a narrow margin to leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, his supporters rioted and broke into government buildings in Brasilia on January 8, 2023.
—Tara John, CNN, 19 Mar. 2024
After Bolsonaro lost that election by a narrow margin to leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, his supporters rioted and broke into government buildings in Brasilia on January 8, 2023.
—Kareem El Damanhoury and Julia Vargas Jones, CNN, 16 Mar. 2024
Not to mention the threat of violence that has loomed over U.S. politics since Mr. Trump’s supporters rioted at the Capitol.
—Lisa Lerer, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024
People from the north were three times as likely to riot.
—Michael S. Rosenwald, Washington Post, 9 Nov. 2023
Tuesday's unanimous ruling is the second time since December that judges have held that Trump can be prosecuted for actions undertaken while in the White House and in the run-up to Jan. 6, 2021, when a mob of his supporters rioted at the U.S. Capitol.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 7 Feb. 2024
The court's decision to grant the case came just days after Trump appealed the decision of Colorado's top court, which had ruled that Trump was not eligible for another term because of his role in ginning up a mob on Jan. 6, 2021 that rioted at the U.S. Capitol.
—John Fritze, USA TODAY, 6 Jan. 2024
Pros: Far-right voters would be thrilled by the partnership, and potentially ready to riot again if Trump loses in November.
—Kyler Alvord, Peoplemag, 25 Jan. 2024
Noun
Social media platforms have been widely viewed as a catalyst for riots in Brazil that took place on January 8 last year, when hundreds of protesters broke into federal government buildings in the capital Brasilia, in scenes reminiscent of the January 6, 2021, insurrection in the United States.
—Hanna Ziady, CNN, 8 Apr. 2024
As a justice, de Moraes has ordered investigations into former President Jair Bolsonaro and his involvement with the post-election capitol riots in Brasilia last year.
—Chad De Guzman, TIME, 8 Apr. 2024
An Independence Capitol riot defendant listed as a fugitive since late January after failing to show up for a probation violation hearing in Washington, D.C., has been arrested.
—Judy L. Thomas, Kansas City Star, 8 Apr. 2024
Take, for example, the kaleidoscopic riot of flavors in the Buss Up Shut Roti Plate at HAAM, a Caribbean restaurant that opened in Williamsburg last fall.
—Helen Rosner, The New Yorker, 31 Mar. 2024
Immigrant in case had no criminal history with a firearm
The Real Raw News post refers to an immigrant named Heriberto Carbajal-Flores who fired seven shots with a handgun while guarding a business amid riots that followed George Floyd's death in June 2020.
—USA TODAY, 29 Mar. 2024
Tennessee’s law was repealed six years later, after a string of riots in the state’s overcrowded prisons.
—ProPublica, 28 Mar. 2024
The 2012 London Games was dominated by fears that the city would be overrun by riots that broke out the previous summer.
—Alexander Smith, NBC News, 26 Mar. 2024
The state created the California FAIR Plan in the 1960s in response to insurers refusing to cover inner-city businesses following riots in Los Angeles’ Watts neighborhood.
—John Woolfolk, The Mercury News, 23 Mar. 2024
Verb
Or forcing a Jewish teacher at a public school in Queens to flee her classroom for safety as hundreds of teenagers rioted through the school, some waving Palestinian flags.
—Bret Stephens, The Mercury News, 9 Apr. 2024
After Bolsonaro lost the election by a narrow margin to leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, his supporters rioted and broke into government buildings in Brasilia on January 8, 2023.
—Tara John, CNN, 19 Mar. 2024
After Bolsonaro lost that election by a narrow margin to leftist President Luiz Inácio Lula da Silva, his supporters rioted and broke into government buildings in Brasilia on January 8, 2023.
—Kareem El Damanhoury and Julia Vargas Jones, CNN, 16 Mar. 2024
Not to mention the threat of violence that has loomed over U.S. politics since Mr. Trump’s supporters rioted at the Capitol.
—Lisa Lerer, New York Times, 6 Mar. 2024
People from the north were three times as likely to riot.
—Michael S. Rosenwald, Washington Post, 9 Nov. 2023
Tuesday's unanimous ruling is the second time since December that judges have held that Trump can be prosecuted for actions undertaken while in the White House and in the run-up to Jan. 6, 2021, when a mob of his supporters rioted at the U.S. Capitol.
—Democrat-Gazette Staff From Wire Reports, arkansasonline.com, 7 Feb. 2024
The court's decision to grant the case came just days after Trump appealed the decision of Colorado's top court, which had ruled that Trump was not eligible for another term because of his role in ginning up a mob on Jan. 6, 2021 that rioted at the U.S. Capitol.
—John Fritze, USA TODAY, 6 Jan. 2024
Pros: Far-right voters would be thrilled by the partnership, and potentially ready to riot again if Trump loses in November.
—Kyler Alvord, Peoplemag, 25 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'riot.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near riot
Cite this Entry
“Riot.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/riot. Accessed 18 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
riot
1 of 2 noun
ri·ot
ˈrī-ət 
1
: public violence, disturbance, or disorder
2
: a varied display of color
3
: something or someone very funny
riot
2 of 2 verb
: to create or take part in a riot
rioter
noun
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share