ruckus

noun

ruck·​us

ˈrə-kəs,

 also  ˈrü-,

or

ˈru̇- 

plural ruckuses

1

: a noisy fight or disturbance : row, commotion

raise/cause/create a ruckus

heard a ruckus down the street

He went outside to see what all the ruckus was about.

The dogs … typically would set off quite a ruckus whenever they heard something in the woods …

—Larry Livermore

2

: a state or situation in which many people are angry or upset : fuss, uproar

… IHOP recently caused a social media ruckus after announcing it would change its name …

—Lauren Delgado

… the county's GOP is embroiled in a lively legal ruckus over an attempt to seize control of the party.

—Charles Burress

Synonyms

• affray [chiefly British]
• brawl
• broil
• donnybrook
• fracas
• fray
• free-for-all
• melee
• mêlée
• rough-and-tumble
• row
• ruction

Examples of ruckus in a Sentence

the ruckus left one person with a sprained wrist

quit creating such a ruckus—I'm trying to sleep!

Recent Examples on the Web

Royal Enfield Royal Enfield made a ruckus at the 2023 EICMA trade show with its electric Him-E adventure motorcycle concept. —Abhimanyu Ghoshal, New Atlas, 11 June 2025

Things boiled over late when Trent Frederic went after Bennett, and the ruckus continued for the rest of the period. —Michael Russo, New York Times, 10 June 2025

The ruckus over the edits contributed to the departure of two top CBS News executives. —Meg James, Los Angeles Times, 2 June 2025

The earlier ruckus began after Braun fouled Harden with 6.6 seconds left in the second quarter, causing a lot of pushing and shoving. —Broderick Turner, Los Angeles Times, 27 Apr. 2025

Word History

Etymology

probably blend of ruction and rumpus

First Known Use

1885, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing ruckus

• raise a ruckus

Rhymes for ruckus

• ficus
• picus

Kids Definition

ruckus

noun

ruck·​us ˈrək-əs 

ˈrük-,

ˈru̇k-

: row entry 4