noun
Meaning 1
A yowling.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Standard Lemma guide
caterwaul
Definitions and examples are grouped by meaning. Pronunciation, history, word forms, translations, descendants, synonyms, antonyms, derived terms, and related words appear whenever the source provides them.
Sound
Pronunciation
Each Play button uses your device's default local English voice, or a natural local fallback. The selected voice name appears after playback. This is synthesized speech, not a source recording.
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Received-Pronunciation: /ˈkæt.ə.wɔːl/
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US: /ˈkæt.ɚ.wɔl/
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cot-caught-merger: /ˈkæt.ɚ.wɑl/
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US: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
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CMU ARPABET: K AE1 T ER0 W AA0 L Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.
noun
Meaning 2
A noisy quarrel.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 3
To cry as cats in heat; to make a harsh, offensive noise.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
verb
Meaning 4
To have a noisy argument, like cats.
Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract
Usage: intransitive
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
noun
Meaning 5
the yowling sound made by a cat in heat
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: none provided
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: cry
verb
Meaning 6
utter shrieks, as of cats
Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0
No example sentence was provided for this meaning.
Meaning relationships
Synonyms: yowl
Antonyms: none provided
Broader terms: shriek, shrill, pipe up, pipe
History
Etymology
From Middle English caterwrawen, from cater (“cat”) + wrawen, wrawlen (“cry like a cat”), equivalent to cat + waul. Compare Low German katerwaulen (“to cry like a cat”) and Middle Dutch cater (“tomcat”) (Dutch kater).
Across languages
Translations
19 source translations are retained for this English entry.
- Danish: kattejammer — noisy quarrel, particularly of cats
- German: Katzenjammer — noisy quarrel, particularly of cats
- Irish: catachas — noisy quarrel, particularly of cats
- Polish: burda — noisy quarrel, particularly of cats
- Czech: vřeštět — to cry as cats
- Czech: vřískat — to cry as cats
- Czech: ječet — to cry as cats
- Dutch: krollen — to cry as cats
- Finnish: mouruta — to cry as cats
- French: feuler — to cry as cats
- Hungarian: nyivákol — to cry as cats
- Hungarian: nyávog — to cry as cats
- Latin: cauriō — to cry as cats
- Polish: miauczeć — to cry as cats
- Polish: miauknąć — to cry as cats
- Bulgarian: дра́кам се (drákam se) — to have a noisy argument
- Czech: ječet — to have a noisy argument
- French: faire du chahut — to have a noisy argument
- Polish: drzeć się — to have a noisy argument
Real reading context