roistered; roistering
ˈrȯi-st(ə-)riŋ 
: to engage in noisy revelry : carouse
… dressed and ready for a roistering night in town …—
Sherwood Anderson
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Roisterer vs Hooliganism
Roister is related to French ruste, meaning "rude" or "rough." That word comes from the fairly neutral Latin rusticus, meaning "rural." Originally, the English verb was simply roist, and one who roisted was a roister. Those words are no longer used; instead, we have the verb roister, and the corresponding noun roisterer.
Synonyms of roister
Examples of roister in a Sentence
Verb
the earl's wastrel son had spent the best part of his youth roistering and gambling
Recent Examples on the Web
Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2019
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Verb
One of his sons, Thomas (Dean-Charles Chapman), though hardly old enough to be in long pants, wears shining armor, while the other son, Hal (Timothée Chalamet), is a slouch who wastes his life in roistering.
—Anthony Lane, The New Yorker, 4 Oct. 2019
Cite this Entry
“Roister.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/roister. Accessed 6 Nov. 2025.
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