hoots 1 of 2

plural of hoot
1
as in howls
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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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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
Verb
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
  • Aragón Aragón is a region that whispers rather than shouts.
    Nigel Hack, Travel + Leisure, 18 Oct. 2025
  • He could also be seen nodding his approval after the dance — and earning a thunderous round of excited shouts from the audience.
    Stephanie Wenger, PEOPLE, 15 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Visitors have reported hearing the sound of cell doors closing, faint screams and footsteps around the cell blocks.
    Craig Shoup, Nashville Tennessean, 21 Oct. 2025
  • The girl's father, who did not see the incident but heard the mother's screams, jumped overboard to rescue his daughter.
    Sarah Rumpf-Whitten , Adriana James-Rodil, FOXNews.com, 21 Oct. 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
  • The scared but resilient puppy cries as rescuers work to free her.
    Michael Nied, PEOPLE, 24 Oct. 2025
  • There were cries of overreach when the Guard was deployed to stem segregationist tension in Arkansas and Alabama in the 1950s and '60s.
    Newsweek Contributors, MSNBC Newsweek, 22 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • 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
  • On the title track, a handful of bass licks grow outward into a waiting drum beat.
    Hanif Abdurraqib, New Yorker, 18 Oct. 2025
Noun
  • Set in the English countryside, the film uses the classic plot of a lower class criminal working his way up through the hierarchy in order to extract laughs from an ensemble of eccentric aristocrats.
    Christian Zilko, IndieWire, 28 Oct. 2025
  • Thanks to an outstanding supporting voice cast that includes Jennifer Coolidge, John Cleese, Jay Leno, Eddie Izzard and Steve Buscemi, Igor is loaded with quirky characters and laughs.
    Keith Langston, PEOPLE, 27 Oct. 2025
Verb
  • 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
Verb
  • Basil, of course, is far from perfect, a rude, neurotic, accident-prone manager who insults guests, hides his gambling winnings from his wife and organizes an elaborate impersonation of her when his surprise anniversary party backfires.
    Rhett Bartlett, HollywoodReporter, 28 Oct. 2025
  • Attorney General Pam Bondi insults Democrats in Senate hearing.
    Sudiksha Kochi, USA Today, 8 Oct. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Hoots.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/hoots. Accessed 3 Nov. 2025.

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