riotous

adjective

ri·​ot·​ous ˈrī-ə-təs How to pronounce riotous (audio)
1
a
: of the nature of a riot : turbulent
b
: participating in riot
2
: abundant, exuberant
the garden was riotous with flowers
riotously adverb
riotousness noun

Examples of riotous in a Sentence

a riotous profusion of flowers his riotous mugging always has everyone in hysterics
Recent Examples on the Web The banana split cream pie is a riotous medley of flavors. Roger Naylor, The Arizona Republic, 18 Feb. 2024 But if season 1 was Fleabag's hilarious, fourth-wall-breaking race to her life's nadir, season 2 brings us her glorious and riotous redemption. Ew Staff, EW.com, 8 Jan. 2024 It’s named for a figure from the Thai Ramayana—a golden mermaid and princess of the seas, who opposed Hanuman and later became his lover—and is a riotous array of shelled and tentacled delights, garnished with orchid blossoms and wedges of fruit. Helen Rosner, The New Yorker, 17 Dec. 2023 The riotous double-decker tower bears a scallop crudo with lemongrass, octopus in a red-bean-curd dressing, and a tart green-mango salad. The New Yorker, 15 Dec. 2023 Flipping one of 2 Live Crew’s most notoriously obscene hooks, the duo dishes out trademark manifestos on scheming men over a riotous bounce beat. Pitchfork, 11 Dec. 2023 In Europe, solidarity with Hamas took the form of mobs, riotous or merely intimidating. Nr Editors, National Review, 20 Oct. 2023 The Kennedy Center will bestow the 25th Mark Twain Prize for American Humor on its youngest recipient in more than a decade: Kevin Hart, the 44-year-old actor and comedian celebrated for his arena-packing stand-up shows and riotous screen presence. Thomas Floyd, Washington Post, 15 Nov. 2023 Nodding to the viral video of hardcore band, Live Without, getting a riotous pit going at a local Denny’s. Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 27 Oct. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'riotous.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

First Known Use

15th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of riotous was in the 15th century

Dictionary Entries Near riotous

Cite this Entry

“Riotous.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/riotous. Accessed 19 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

riotous

adjective
ri·​ot·​ous ˈrī-ət-əs How to pronounce riotous (audio)
1
a
: of the nature of a riot
b
: taking part in rioting
2
: abundant
a garden riotous with flowers
riotously adverb

Legal Definition

riotous

adjective
ri·​ot·​ous ˈrī-ə-təs How to pronounce riotous (audio)
1
: of the nature of a riot
riotous conduct
2
: participating in a riot
a riotous assemblage

More from Merriam-Webster on riotous

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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