bawl

[bawl] /bɔl/
verb (used without object)
1.
to cry or wail lustily.
verb (used with object)
2.
to utter or proclaim by outcry; shout out:
to bawl one's dissatisfaction; bawling his senseless ditties to the audience.
3.
to offer for sale by shouting, as a hawker:
a peddler bawling his wares.
noun
4.
a loud shout; outcry.
5.
a period or spell of loud crying or weeping.
6.
Chiefly Midland and Western U.S. the noise made by a calf.
Verb phrases
7.
bawl out, Informal. to scold vociferously; reprimand or scold vigorously:
Your father will bawl you out when he sees this mess.
Origin
1400-50; late Middle English < Medieval Latin baulāre to bark < Germanic; compare Old Norse baula to low, baula cow, perhaps a conflation of belja (see bell2) with an old root *bhu-
Related forms
bawler, noun
outbawl, verb (used with object)
Can be confused
bald, balled, bawled.
ball, bawl, bowl.
Synonyms
1. howl, yowl, squall, roar, bellow.
Examples from the web for bawl
  • In other words bawl loud enough, or get someone to do it for you, and you'll get what you want.
  • It's frightening to watch someone bawl their eyes out over a cam.
  • When handled by researchers studying the animal, or when they are in danger, cubs will bawl.
British Dictionary definitions for bawl

bawl

/bɔːl/
verb
1.
(intransitive) to utter long loud cries, as from pain or frustration; wail
2.
to shout loudly, as in anger
noun
3.
a loud shout or cry
Derived Forms
bawler, noun
bawling, noun
Word Origin
C15: probably from Icelandic baula to low; related to Medieval Latin baulāre to bark, Swedish böla to low; all of imitative origin
Word Origin and History for bawl
v.

mid-15c., "to howl like a dog," from Old Norse baula "to low like a cow," and/or Medieval Latin baulare "to bark like a dog," both echoic. Meaning "to shout loudly" attested from 1590s. To bawl (someone) out "reprimand loudly" is 1908, American English. Related: Bawled; bawling.