hoots 1 of 2

Definition of hootsnext
plural of hoot
1
as in shouts
a loud vocal expression of strong emotion the courtroom erupted in hoots of laughter upon hearing the witness's sarcastic retort to the lawyer's arrogant remark

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2
as in snorts
a vocal sound made to express scorn or disapproval he ignored the hoots and jeers coming from the back of the crowd and kept on speaking until he'd had his say

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

3
4

hoots

2 of 2

verb

present tense third-person singular of hoot

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 hoots
Noun
There are hoots and hollers from raucous tourists on Bourbon Street, for example. Matt Alderton, USA Today, 24 Oct. 2025 There are a few hoots and hollers as the others agree or protest. Sara Holdren, Vulture, 21 Oct. 2025 All the segments understand the assignment, aiming primarily to elicit hoots and hollers. James Grebey, Time, 12 Sep. 2025 The town hall crowd received my comments with strong clapping and appreciative hoots and hollers. Chicago Tribune, 25 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for hoots
Noun
  • There would be no third consecutive title, no hoisting of the championship cup over heads, no giddy laughter or shouts of joy.
    Tris Wykes, Twin Cities, 3 Jan. 2026
  • Other shouts will inevitably go out to The Strawberry next door to Newcastle United or The Colliery Tavern beside Sunderland’s Stadium of Light.
    Daniel Taylor, New York Times, 24 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • The Rodents of Unusual Size that attack Westley in a swamp work because they are played by small men in rodent suits, rather than coolly conjured from pixels; their deliberate artifice is the thrill, and Reiner provided the voice for their hideous snorts.
    Alexandra Schwartz, New Yorker, 17 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • For KATSEYE‘s Megan, that revelation arrived not during the live reveal or from celebratory screams, but in the glow of KATSEYE’s group chat.
    Jeff Benjamin, Billboard, 8 Nov. 2025
  • A day that started all warm and quiet and cozy has now spiraled into screams of heresy and hearsay punctuated by occasional wrestling matches on the carpet.
    Paul Cappiello, Louisville Courier Journal, 7 Nov. 2025
Verb
  • Held in May of last year, the dinner saw walkouts and howls of dissent as Ari Emanuel tore into Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu over what the super-agent saw as an overkill response to the October 7 attacks.
    Dominic Patten, Deadline, 30 Oct. 2025
  • Wind howls as one of the daughters' body rocks on a gurney, her family lighting candles as a rabbi screams scripture with water crashing in a nearby tub.
    Michael Lee Simpson, Entertainment Weekly, 29 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • There’s going to be a lot of oohs and aahs and cries and laughs and love.
    Kirsten Chuba, HollywoodReporter, 7 Nov. 2025
  • Women from the village, who were down washing clothes in the river, heard the cries and rallied the community to help, Dumasá said.
    Daniel Gonzalez, AZCentral.com, 5 Nov. 2025
Noun
  • Sexy guitar licks and a groovy rhythm couple together to create a fiery, catchy tune.
    Audrey Gibbs, Nashville Tennessean, 30 Oct. 2025
  • While Kendrick and Drake were putting their pens to their limits, Metro fired up some software and got his licks in.
    Andre Gee, Rolling Stone, 23 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Not all of the jokes work, but even the grumpiest theatergoers will find plenty of laughs.
    Ross Raihala, Twin Cities, 7 Jan. 2026
  • But the comedians also used those laughs to reveal the fundamental absurdity of violence and conflict.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 7 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Cowboy and cowgirl hoots and hollers complement the rumbling of the massive animals’ hooves as they’re rounded up into the corrals.
    Lydia Mansel, Travel + Leisure, 28 Dec. 2025
  • The epic shot shows the massive scale of the Sphere as the Chicago Bulls theme plays in the background and Chalamet enthusiastically hoots and hollers in celebration.
    Marina Watts, PEOPLE, 22 Dec. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Hoots.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoots. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.

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