shrill

Meanings

Plural: shrills

Verb

utter a shrill cry
To make a shrill noise.

Adjective Satellite

having or emitting a high-pitched and sharp tone or tones
- "a shrill whistle"
- "a shrill gaiety"
being sharply insistent on being heard
- "shrill criticism"
of colors that are bright and gaudy
- "a shrill turquoise"

Adj

High-pitched and piercing.
Having a shrill voice.
Sharp or keen to the senses.
Fierce, loud, strident.

Noun

A shrill sound.

Origin / Etymology

From Late Middle English schrille, shirle, shrille (“of a sound: high-pitched, piercing; producing such a sound”), possibly from the earlier shil, schille (“loud, resounding; high-pitched”), from Old English scill (“sonorous sounding”), of Germanic origin and probably ultimately imitative.
The r in the word was introduced by analogy to Middle English skrīke, skrīken, scrēmen, possibly to avoid confusion with non-Anglian forms of schelle (modern English shell) where Old English scill (“sonorous sounding”) and scill (“shell”) existed.
The word is cognate with Icelandic skella (“crash, bang, slam”), Low German schrell (“sharp in taste or tone”).

Synonyms

pipe, pipe up, sharp, shriek, strident

Scrabble Score: 9

shrill is a valid Scrabble (US) TWL word
shrill is a valid Scrabble Word in Merriam-Webster MW Dictionary
shrill is a valid Scrabble Word in International Collins CSW Dictionary

Words With Friends Score: 10

shrill is a valid Words With Friends word