as in gruff
harsh and dry in sound
the dying man spoke in a hoarse whisper
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
Read More
Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
Send us feedback.
Recent Examples of hoarse
Joe Biden’s disastrous June 2024 debate performance, when the nation witnessed a hoarse and feeble president losing his train of thought and struggling to finish sentences, ended his re-election campaign.
—
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 8 July 2025
For most of his first 10 songs, Costello’s singing was ragged and hoarse.
—George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 June 2025
Screamed himself hoarse and still tried calling for his brother.
—Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 June 2025
Signs someone has swallowed a button battery include: noisy breathing, coughing, drooling, difficulty swallowing, a hoarse voice, vomiting, chest or abdominal pain, and gagging, coughing or choking with eating or drinking.
—Meredith Wilshere, People.com, 8 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for hoarse
Swapna Venugopal Ramaswamy, USA Today, 8 July 2025
For most of his first 10 songs, Costello’s singing was ragged and hoarse.
—George Varga, San Diego Union-Tribune, 25 June 2025
Screamed himself hoarse and still tried calling for his brother.
—Maria Morava, MSNBC Newsweek, 17 June 2025
Signs someone has swallowed a button battery include: noisy breathing, coughing, drooling, difficulty swallowing, a hoarse voice, vomiting, chest or abdominal pain, and gagging, coughing or choking with eating or drinking.
—Meredith Wilshere, People.com, 8 June 2025
See All Example Sentences for hoarse
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hoarse
Adjective
-
Patterson was hired in a guest role as the gruff diner owner with a heart of gold, Luke Danes.—
Anika Reed,
USA Today,
7 Nov. 2025
-
Burr plays a gruff American record-store owner who convinces a ragtag gang of teenage misfits that their best, and possibly only, chance to lose their virginity before graduating high school is at a massive open-air mass for the visiting Pope.—
Matt Grobar,
Deadline,
5 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Athena, who was born in April, is a shepsky mix, half husky and half German shepherd.—
Alyce Collins,
MSNBC Newsweek,
24 Oct. 2025
-
One of Lipa’s most significant attributes is the husky tone of her mezzo-soprano, lending a gritty roughness to her songs’ pop polish.—
Steven J. Horowitz,
Variety,
5 Oct. 2025
Adjective
-
Few appetizers are as easy to prepare and universally appealing as a steamy bowl of edamame pods enhanced with coarse salt.—
Tammy Algood,
Southern Kitchen,
11 Nov. 2025
-
Simply pump the handle to cut food into fine, chunky, or coarse bits as needed.—
Sian Babish,
PEOPLE,
10 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
Hunt keeps things simple and has shockingly not looked rusty at all despite having to patiently bide his time.—
Michael Russo,
New York Times,
10 Nov. 2025
-
Sluggish start The Horned Frogs looked more rusty than rested coming off the bye week as TCU trailed Iowa State 6-3 at halftime.—
Steven Johnson,
Fort Worth Star-Telegram,
9 Nov. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Hoarse.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoarse. Accessed 29 Nov. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share