howling 1 of 2

Definition of howlingnext
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howling

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verb

present participle of howl
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as in screaming
to make a long loud mournful sound several coyotes began howling close by as the sun went down the wind howled on the open plain

Synonyms & Similar Words

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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 howling
Adjective
The City of Aurora, Illinois, is touting a howling success. Adam Harrington, CBS News, 8 Jan. 2026 With relentless howling wind making up much of the soundtrack, The Turin Horse was a chilling, enigmatic stunner that played like a metaphor for the apocalypse. Tim Grierson, Rolling Stone, 6 Jan. 2026 After the rain stopped, there was a strange howling sound from the wind that was loud, constant, and all night long. Thao Nguyen, USA Today, 30 Oct. 2025 Aaron Chown—Press Association via AP Images People remove a new artwork by Banksy, depicting a howling wolf painted on a satellite dish that was placed on a shop roof in Peckham, south London. Rebecca Schneid, Time, 10 Sep. 2025 Get ready for a wild ride in Kansas City as a weather system will send temperatures plummeting and usher in howling winds, rain and maybe some light snow on Wednesday, according to the National Weather Service. Robert A. Cronkleton, Kansas City Star, 19 Mar. 2025 Burning telephone poles blocked lanes and black soot swept across the pavement, blown by the howling winds. Sean Greene, Los Angeles Times, 16 Jan. 2025 But most ominous of all, at least for me, are the howling winds. Eric Berger, Ars Technica, 9 July 2024 Sender shifts between stories of love — between lovers, friends, family, ghosts — and the great looming shadow of the Holocaust, making a deep and howling portrait of longing and loneliness. Nina McLaughlin, BostonGlobe.com, 9 Mar. 2023
Verb
But physical appearance is not the only thing that defines them, as therians adopt animal-like attitudes such as walking or running on all fours, sniffing, howling, meowing, and sometimes biting. Paula Soria, AZCentral.com, 17 Feb. 2026 The onslaught of bad news elicited howling in Canada, groans in Atlanta and frenetic Googling to determine just what, exactly, is the hamate bone. Andy McCullough, New York Times, 12 Feb. 2026 The poll comes as the ballot measure proposal, which is being pushed by the health care worker labor union SEIU-UHW, draws howling fury from some vocal billionaires who have threatened to leave the state and, in some cases, taken steps toward divesting from California. Andrew Graham, Sacbee.com, 21 Jan. 2026 Whitman’s howling yodel and clean-cut persona were a far cry from the sound Presley had been rehearsing. Joe Sills, Forbes.com, 17 Jan. 2026 Eventually, several officers move in on the man, and the video shows the dog down, then jumping to its feet while howling. Rick Hurd, Mercury News, 14 Jan. 2026 Stalter and Downs had the crowd howling with their commitment to the bit. Marc Malkin, Variety, 5 Jan. 2026 January’s full moon is called the Wolf Moon because wolves were more likely to be heard howling at this time. Newsroom Meteorologist, Austin American Statesman, 3 Jan. 2026 January's full moon is commonly referred to as the Wolf Moon, because wolves are more likely to be heard howling during this time of year. Michele Laufik, Martha Stewart, 2 Jan. 2026
Recent Examples of Synonyms for howling
Adjective
  • Think Pictionary, but with way more yelling and questionable drawings.
    Francesca Krempa, StyleCaster, 11 Nov. 2025
Adjective
  • But his crying scene in Ford v Ferrari is one for the ages.
    Michael Granberry, Dallas News, 17 Jan. 2020
Verb
  • As the nation bonded as one over the past two weeks biting nails, screaming at wins, wincing at crashes and choking up at all the beautiful moments of Olympic competition, another group of athletes were – and still are – out honing their multi-level championship skills.
    Moira McCarthy, Boston Herald, 25 Feb. 2026
  • People went ballistic—cursing, yelling, screaming, all kinds of threats.
    Andrew Norman Wilson, Harpers Magazine, 24 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • His shrieking reactions to his wife’s savagery throw into relief his good nature and her perversity.
    Theater Critic, Los Angeles Times, 25 Feb. 2026
  • The shrieking young women are hilarious, as are their hairdos.
    David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
  • With some exceptions, larger animals have larger vocal systems and typically make lower sounds.
    Adithi Ramakrishnan, Los Angeles Times, 24 Feb. 2026
  • With some exceptions, larger animals have larger vocal systems and typically make lower sounds.
    ABC News, ABC News, 23 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • That distinct lack of urgency from Washington stands in stark contrast to the anxiety in Moscow, where there has been much wailing and gnashing of teeth over the arms reduction issue.
    Matthew Chance, CNN Money, 4 Feb. 2026
  • In the early twentieth century, on the Andaman Islands, social anthropologists observed ritualistic greetings that involved wailing and weeping.
    Shayla Love, New Yorker, 4 Feb. 2026
Verb
  • The sheriff’s office Facebook post about Penelope’s arrest racked up hundreds of comments and reactions within an hour, including a lot of pig, hog, pork, ham, bacon and squealing puns.
    Mark Price, Charlotte Observer, 17 Feb. 2026
  • The Cheers alum regaled how his mom showed up on set of Indecent Proposal squealing like a 16-year old in her fandom of Redford, who warmly received her.
    Matt Grobar, Deadline, 23 Jan. 2026
Verb
  • Bowling at run-hungry batters on largely unforgiving pitches in vast, cacophonous stadiums with huge outfields in front of a partisan and at times baying crowd — plenty of English bowlers have found bowling in Australia akin to a Sisyphean task.
    James Wallace, New York Times, 22 Sep. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Howling.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/howling. Accessed 3 Mar. 2026.

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