belch

verb

belched; belching; belches

intransitive verb

1
: to expel gas suddenly from the stomach through the mouth
2
: to erupt, explode, or detonate violently
3
: to issue forth spasmodically : gush

transitive verb

1
: to eject or emit violently
angrily belched insults
2
: to expel (gas) from the stomach suddenly : eruct
belch noun

Examples of belch in a Sentence

He belched loudly, and his girlfriend said, “That's disgusting!”. Smoke belched from the factory chimneys beside the river.
Recent Examples on the Web Depending on the angle, chimneys constantly belching gray-black smoke are visible. Bill Goodykoontz, The Arizona Republic, 15 Jan. 2024 And while the offense has had its hiccups while being one of the league’s best, the defensive side of ball has belched out poor showings all season long. Jim Owczarski, Journal Sentinel, 27 Jan. 2024 In 1783, the Laki volcanic system belched out poisonous gases that led to the death of over half of Iceland’s livestock and caused a famine. Ben Brasch, Washington Post, 18 Dec. 2023 This herd belches and excretes tremendous amounts of methane, a greenhouse gas that warms the atmosphere 80 times more than carbon dioxide over a 20-year period. Tony Briscoe, Los Angeles Times, 5 Dec. 2023 In Edgewood, above the remnants of Tiber Creek and below a massive 13-acre concrete development, water belched up out of Jessica Sarstedt’s toilet and into 30 homes around Bryant and Third streets NE. John Muyskens, Washington Post, 19 Dec. 2023 Since then, it’s been a waiting game to see when exactly an eruption would occur, giving authorities plenty of time to prepare to handle the fissures belching lava. Jessica Puckett, Condé Nast Traveler, 19 Dec. 2023 Lest any viewer get too lost in the bright-green weeds of the Höss family’s daily routines, Glazer punctuates the movie with hallucinatory sequences, with eerily expressionistic black-and-white, night-vision thermal images, featuring music like sepulchral belches from the Earth’s depths. Richard Brody, The New Yorker, 14 Dec. 2023 Baker poured billions into replacing tracks, fixing signals and updating electrical systems even as officials dealt with runaway trains, subway cars belching smoke and rush hour trains running on weekend schedules. Steve Leblanc, Fortune, 25 Dec. 2023

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'belch.' 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

Middle English, from Old English bealcan

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of belch was before the 12th century

Dictionary Entries Near belch

Cite this Entry

“Belch.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/belch. Accessed 28 Mar. 2024.

Kids Definition

belch

1 of 2 verb
ˈbelch
1
: to force out gas from the stomach through the mouth
2
: to throw out or be thrown out violently
smoke belching from the chimney

belch

2 of 2 noun
: a belching of gas

Medical Definition

belch

1 of 2 intransitive verb
: to expel gas suddenly from the stomach through the mouth

transitive verb

: to expel (gas) from the stomach suddenly : eruct

belch

2 of 2 noun
: an act or instance of belching : eructation

More from Merriam-Webster on belch

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