1
: a high shrill piercing cry usually expressing pain or terror
2
: a sound resembling a screech
screeched; screeching; screeches
1
: to utter a high shrill piercing cry : make an outcry usually in terror or pain
2
: to make a shrill high-pitched sound resembling a screech
also
: to move with such a sound
the car screeched to a stop
: to utter with or as if with a screech
screecher
noun
Examples of screech in a Sentence
Noun
With a loud screech, she smashed the plate against the wall.
Verb
I screeched when I saw the mouse.
He kept screeching at the children to pay attention.
“You can't do this to me!” she screeched.
Recent Examples on the Web
Michael Ashley, Forbes.com, 25 Aug. 2025
Building walls over Northlake mall storefronts On a recent Friday around lunchtime, Northlake’s food court was bustling with passersby, people ordering at counters and about 50 people sitting at dining tables as the sound of conversation and children’s screeches filled the air.
—Charlotte Observer, 13 Aug. 2025
Jim Radcliffe, Oc Register, 29 Aug. 2025
Meanwhile, primeval rainforests murmur with ancient secrets—thick with strangler figs and screeching cockatoos.
—Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for screech
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Noun
Once upon a time the screech of the dial-up sound signaled our entry into a new realm in the form of the Internet.
—Michael Ashley, Forbes.com, 25 Aug. 2025
Building walls over Northlake mall storefronts On a recent Friday around lunchtime, Northlake’s food court was bustling with passersby, people ordering at counters and about 50 people sitting at dining tables as the sound of conversation and children’s screeches filled the air.
—Charlotte Observer, 13 Aug. 2025
Verb
The key is that law enforcement wants drivers to hear sirens — or screeching tires — Gutierrez pointed out.
—Jim Radcliffe, Oc Register, 29 Aug. 2025
Meanwhile, primeval rainforests murmur with ancient secrets—thick with strangler figs and screeching cockatoos.
—Lewis Nunn, Forbes.com, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for screech
Cite this Entry
“Screech.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/screech. Accessed 8 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
screech
1 of 2 noun1
: a shrill harsh cry usually expressing pain or terror
2
: a sound like a screech
the screech of brakes
screech
2 of 2 verb1
: to cry out usually in terror or pain
2
: to make a sound like a screech
the car screeched to a halt
screecher
noun
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