yowl

1 of 2

verb

yowled; yowling; yowls

intransitive verb

1
: to utter a loud long cry of grief, pain, or distress : wail
2
: to complain or protest with or as if with yowls

transitive verb

: to express with yowling

yowl

2 of 2

noun

: a loud long mournful wail or howl (as of a cat)

Examples of yowl in a Sentence

Verb The cat was yowling outside. He was yowling in pain. Noun the cat gave a yowl of anger
Recent Examples on the Web
Verb
The music video for the song weaves together footage from each of the sessions: Slash with his bandmates cutting the song live, Johnson getting into the groove, and Tyler yowling between harp bursts. Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 8 Mar. 2024 When injured or in pain, bobcats squall, creating a sharp sort of yowling sound. The Arizona Republic, 25 Jan. 2024
Noun
The guitar riffs recall how Mastodon sounded circa Leviathan, paired with Blythe’s inimitable yowls. Kory Grow, Rolling Stone, 12 Sep. 2024 The cat sometimes unleashed a penetrating yowl that reminded Ducrot of her husband’s final days. Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 22 July 2024 See all Example Sentences for yowl 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'yowl.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English

First Known Use

Verb

13th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Noun

15th century, in the meaning defined above

Time Traveler
The first known use of yowl was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near yowl

Cite this Entry

“Yowl.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/yowl. Accessed 3 Oct. 2024.

Kids Definition

yowl

verb
ˈyau̇(ə)l
: to utter a loud long often mournful cry or howl
the cats were yowling all night
yowl noun

More from Merriam-Webster on yowl

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!