[count]
: a sound or noise that someone (such as an audience member) makes toward a speaker, performer, athlete, etc., that he or she does not like
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The pitcher heard angry catcalls as he walked off the field.
This shows grade level based on the word's complexity. / ˈkætˌkɔl / See synonyms for: catcall / catcalled / catcalling on Thesaurus.com This shows grade level based on the word's complexity. a shrill, whistlelike sound or loud raucous shout made to express disapproval at a theater, meeting, etc. an instrument for producing such a sound. verb (used without object) to express disapproval of by catcalls.
See synonyms for catcall on Thesaurus.com
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First recorded in 1650–60; cat + call
catboat, catbrier, cat-built, cat burglar, cat cafe, catcall, catch, Catch-22, catchall, catch-as-catch-can, catch at
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022
boo, derision, hiss, hoot, jeer, whistle, gibe, raspberry, shout
I braced myself for scornful looks, maybe even shrieks and catcalls, possibly even a fight—but no one noticed, except for a jerk in a Subaru who shot me a disapproving smirk.
Some folks say Emmett whistled at Carolyn as a manner of catcall, expressing his admiration.
The soldier, addressed put a finger to the sound side of his mouth and uttered a catcall.
The Burning Spear|John Galsworthy
The essayist, however, is disposed to hold that the catcall is originally a piece of English music.
A Book of the Play|Dutton Cook
The conveyance of a catcall to the theatre evidences a predisposition to uproarious censure.
A Book of the Play|Dutton Cook
He found that antiquaries were much divided in opinion as to the origin of the catcall.
A Book of the Play|Dutton Cook
She smiled as she heard the shrill catcall of a lad in Forsyth Street.
a shrill whistle or cry expressing disapproval, as at a public meeting, etc to utter such a call (at); deride with catcalls
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
© 2022 Dictionary.com, LLC
cat + call Mid-17th c. < the resemblance to cats' nocturnal cries.
catcall (plural catcalls)
catcall (third-person singular simple present catcalls, present participle catcalling, simple past and past participle catcalled)
2007 April 1, Ada Calhoun, “Up Front”, in New York Times[1]: When Susan Seligson thinks about breasts — and, since she’s a DDD-endowed (touché) middle-aged woman who’s been groped and catcalled her whole life, that’s often, too — she thinks about ... her own DDDs. Short for change availability or type + call.
catcall (plural catcalls)
Alternative formsEdit
NounEdit
VerbEdit
TranslationsEdit Etymology 2Edit
NounEdit