rouse

1 of 3

verb

ˈrau̇z 

roused; rousing

transitive verb

1

a

: to arouse from or as if from sleep or repose : awaken

roused the campers for a hike at dawn

b

: to stir up : excite

was roused to fury

2

archaic : to cause to break from cover

intransitive verb

1

: to become aroused : awaken

rousing late on a Saturday

2

: to become stirred

… before she could rouse from this insult …

—Grace Kinnicutt

rousement

ˈrau̇z-mənt 

noun

rouser noun

rouse

2 of 3

noun (1)

: an act or instance of rousing

especially : an excited stir

rouse

3 of 3

noun (2)

1

archaic : carousal

2

obsolete : drink, toast

Synonyms of rouse

Verb

• wake
• awaken
• awake
• arouse

Examples of rouse in a Sentence

Verb

I've been unable to rouse her.

I was so tired I could barely rouse myself to prepare dinner.

These animals are dangerous when roused.

She was roused to anger by their indifference.

Recent Examples on the Web

Verb

Curry came off the bench to rousing standing ovations in his first two home games before returning to the starting five for Friday night's loss at Sacramento. —ABC News, 13 Apr. 2026

Mission Control will rouse the astronauts with a wakeup song, kind of like an alarm. —Tariq Malik, Space.com, 10 Apr. 2026

That unnerving bawl, which reappears at the rousing finale of the Barcelona concert, reflects the control Ciani has over her instrument, a mastery she’s built over almost 50 years of practice. —Andrew Ryce, Pitchfork, 9 Apr. 2026

Thankfully, there's something to that old adage about felines having nine lives because The Jellicle Ball rouses Cats from its grave. —Shania Russell, Entertainment Weekly, 8 Apr. 2026

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, to shake the feathers

Noun (2)

alteration (from misdivision of to drink carouse) of carouse

First Known Use

Verb

1531, in the meaning defined at transitive sense 2

Noun (1)

1764, in the meaning defined above

Noun (2)

circa 1593, in the meaning defined at sense 2

Rhymes for rouse

• blouse
• bouse
• douse
• dowse
• grouse
• haus
• louse
• mouse
• spouse
• youse
• alehouse
• almshouse

Kids Definition

rouse

verb

ˈrau̇z

roused; rousing

1

: awake entry 1 sense 1

2

: to make or become active : stir up