Definitions

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 5th Edition.

  • intransitive verb To cry out loudly, as in pain, fright, surprise, or enthusiasm.
  • intransitive verb To utter or express with a loud cry.
  • noun A loud cry; a shout.
  • noun A cheer uttered or chanted in unison.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • Same as yeld.
  • To cry out with a sharp, loud noise; shriek; cry or scream as with agony, horror, or ferocity.
  • To utter with a yell.
  • Dialectal forms of ale, ale-house.
  • noun A sharp, loud outcry; a scream or cry suggestive of horror, distress, agony, or ferocity.
  • noun Specifically
  • noun A call or cry peculiar to a special body of persons: as, a class yell; the yell of Columbia, 91.

from the GNU version of the Collaborative International Dictionary of English.

  • intransitive verb To cry out, or shriek, with a hideous noise; to cry or scream as with agony or horror.
  • transitive verb To utter or declare with a yell; to proclaim in a loud tone.
  • noun A sharp, loud, hideous outcry.

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License.

  • verb intransitive shout; holler; make a loud sound with the voice.
  • verb transitive To convey by shouting.
  • noun A shout.
  • adjective Ulster dry (of cow)

from WordNet 3.0 Copyright 2006 by Princeton University. All rights reserved.

  • verb utter a sudden loud cry
  • noun a loud utterance; often in protest or opposition
  • verb utter or declare in a very loud voice
  • noun a loud utterance of emotion (especially when inarticulate)

Etymologies

from The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, 4th Edition

[Middle English yellen, from Old English giellan, gellan; see ghel- in Indo-European roots.]

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Scots yeld ("ceasing to give milk").

from Wiktionary, Creative Commons Attribution/Share-Alike License

From Old English ġiellan.

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Examples

Comments

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  • 'His raving yells, his sobbing and his quarrels

    obliged us to commit him to "The Laurels".'

    - Peter Reading, Commitment, from Tom O' Bedlam's Beauties, 1981

    June 29, 2008