Standard Lemma guide

fracas

noun · 2 senses · updated from the 2026-07-25 local source snapshot

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.

  • UK: /ˈfɹækɑː/
  • UK: /fɹəˈkɑː/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • US: /ˈfɹeɪkəs/
  • US: /ˈfɹækəs/
  • US: /ˈfɹækaː/
  • Southern-England: Recorded audio is listed in the source snapshot.
  • CMU ARPABET: F R EY1 K AH0 S Digits mark lexical stress: 1 primary, 2 secondary, 0 unstressed.

1

noun

Meaning 1

A noisy disorderly quarrel, fight, brawl, disturbance or scrap.

Definition source: English Wiktionary via Wiktextract

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: commotion, hubbub, kerfuffle, ado, argy-bargy, bangarang, bobbery, brouhaha, bunfight, bustle, bust-up, chaos, ferment, clamour, clatter, disruption, disturbance, flap, flutter, foofaraw, fracas, furor, fuss, hobbleshaw, hoo-ha, hoo-hah, hullabaloo, hurly-burly, mayhem, merry hell, outcry, palaver, pandemonium, pother, quarrel, riot, rowdydow, ruckus, rumpus, shemozzle, shindy, splatterdash, stir, stooshie, three-ring circus, to-do, tomfoolery, trouble, tumult, turmoil, unrest, uproar, upstir

Antonyms: none provided

2

noun

Meaning 2

noisy quarrel

Definition source: Princeton WordNet 3.0

No example sentence was provided for this meaning.

Meaning relationships

Synonyms: affray, altercation

Antonyms: none provided

Broader terms: quarrel, wrangle, row, words, run-in, dustup

Narrower terms: batrachomyomachia

History

Etymology

From French fracas, derived from fracasser, from Italian fracassare, from fra- + cassare, equivalent to Latin infra + quassare.

Across languages

Translations

27 source translations are retained for this English entry.

  • Bulgarian: свада (svada) — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Bulgarian: караница (karanica) — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Czech: rvačka — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Czech: hádka — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Czech: šarvátka — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Finnish: rytäkkä — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Finnish: rähinä — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • French: bagarre — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • German: Tumult — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • German: Aufruhr — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Hungarian: perpatvar — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Italian: fracasso — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Māori: kekeritanga — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Māori: riringa — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Māori: taute — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Plautdietsch: Jeläw — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Plautdietsch: Schläajarie — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Polish: awantura — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Portuguese: rixa — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Russian: сканда́л (skandál) — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Russian: шу́мная ссо́ра (šúmnaja ssóra) — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Spanish: alboroto — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Spanish: tumulto — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Spanish: altercado — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Spanish: gresca — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Welsh: helynt — a noisy disorderly quarrel
  • Welsh: ffrwgwd — a noisy disorderly quarrel