strident

adjective stri·dent \ ˈstrī-dᵊnt \

Updated on: 9 May 2018

: characterized by harsh, insistent, and discordant sound

a strident voice

; also : commanding attention by a loud or obtrusive quality

strident slogans

—

stridently

adverb

See strident defined for English-language learners

See strident defined for kids

Examples of strident in a Sentence

The strident tone in his voice revealed his anger.

Recent Examples of strident from the Web

Deputy attorney general Rod Rosenstein, in a speech at the Naval Academy late last year, was even more strident.

— steven levy, WIRED, "Cracking the Crypto War," 25 Apr. 2018
Kim launched his recent charm offensive after a series of unprecedented, strident and inflammatory statements by President Trump.

— jon wolfsthal, The New Republic, "If It Seems Too Good to Be True...," 21 Apr. 2018
Ariel Reboyras agreed to include the long-languishing CPAC plan along with three other less-strident police oversight packages in a series of meetings around the city.

— john byrne, chicagotribune.com, "Plan to give Chicago residents power to fire police officers to be included in community hearings," 17 Apr. 2018
Alderman Christopher Clark, a strident critic of the mayor and his administration, also bemoaned the choice of employees apparently let go.

— zak koeske, Daily Southtown, "Harvey lays off 40 police and fire employees, union officials say," 11 Apr. 2018
As the number of true centrists dwindles in both parties, it is being extended to those who express ideological views in a way that sounds reasonable and co-operative, not strident and dogmatic.

— The Economist, "Senator Chris Murphy has become a leader on gun-control," 5 Apr. 2018
Some inside the White House believe McMaster endangered his standing with Trump by being too strident, according to a person familiar with deliberations.

— margaret talev, Bloomberg.com, "White House Denies McMaster Is Next to Be Ousted," 16 Mar. 2018
Mr Duque, his protégé, is less strident and more technocratic.

— The Economist, "The contenders to succeed Colombia’s peacemaking president," 15 Mar. 2018
Trump's frustration with Shulkin appears to be the most strident.

— kevin liptak, CNN, "Trump eyes purging Cabinet 'deadweight'," 14 Mar. 2018

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'strident.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Origin and Etymology of strident

Latin strident-, stridens, present participle of stridere, stridēre to make a harsh noise

NEW! Time Traveler

First Known Use: circa 1656

in the meaning defined above

See Words from the same year

Synonym Discussion of strident

loud, stentorian, earsplitting, raucous, strident mean marked by intensity or volume of sound. loud applies to any volume above normal and may suggest undue vehemence or obtrusiveness.

- loud shouts of protest

stentorian implies great power and range.

- an actor with a stentorian voice

earsplitting implies loudness that is physically discomforting.

- the earsplitting sound of a siren

raucous implies a loud harsh grating tone, especially of voice, and may suggest rowdiness.

- the raucous shouts of drunken revelers

strident implies a rasping discordant but insistent quality, especially of voice.

- the strident voices of hecklers

vociferous, clamorous, blatant, strident, boisterous, obstreperous mean so loud or insistent as to compel attention. vociferous implies a vehement shouting or calling out.

- vociferous cries of protest and outrage

clamorous may imply insistency as well as vociferousness in demanding or protesting.

- clamorous demands for prison reforms

blatant implies an offensive bellowing or insensitive loudness.

- blatant rock music
- a blatant clamor for impeachment

strident suggests harsh and discordant noise.

- heard the strident cry of the crow

boisterous suggests a noisiness and turbulence due to high spirits.

- a boisterous crowd of party goers

obstreperous suggests unruly and aggressive noisiness and resistance to restraint.

- the obstreperous demonstrators were arrested

STRIDENT Defined for English Language Learners

strident

adjective

: sounding harsh and unpleasant
: expressing opinions or criticism in a very forceful and often annoying or unpleasant way

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See words that rhyme with strident Spanish Central: Translation of strident Nglish: Translation of strident for Spanish speakers Britannica English: Translation of strident for Arabic speakers

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