Verb
We saw people yelling for help.
I heard someone yelling my name.
The crowd was yelling wildly. Noun
the crowd gave a yell of approval
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Verb
Vance, a former senator, had complained about an incident where someone yelled at his son while walking through Union Station a couple of years ago.—Bart Jansen, USA Today, 28 Aug. 2025 Months later, in November, Zach Bryan yelled at fans for throwing things on stage.—Daniela Avila, People.com, 27 Aug. 2025
Noun
Her rough vocal take is filled with hurt; Williams strains her voice as each word turns into a yell.—Maya Georgi, Rolling Stone, 28 Aug. 2025 Within minutes, parents making their way to a fence near the school yell at officers to do something.—Jim Vertuno and John Seewer The Associated Press, Arkansas Online, 13 Aug. 2025 See All Example Sentences for yell
Word History
Etymology
Verb
Middle English yellen, going back to Old English giellan, gyllan, going back to Germanic *gellan- (whence also Old High German kellen, gellen "to make a shrill sound," Old Norse gjalla "to scream"), perhaps a back-formation from *gullōn-, iterative derivative of *galan- "to sing, cry" — more at nightingale
Noun
Middle English yel, yelle, derivative of yellen "to yell entry 1"
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