Definitions

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

  • intransitive verb To utter a harsh scream; screech.
  • intransitive verb Informal To complain or protest noisily or peevishly.
  • intransitive verb To utter with or as if with a squawk.
  • noun A loud screech.
  • noun A noisy complaint.

from The Century Dictionary.

  • To cry with a loud harsh voice; make a loud outcry, as a duck or other fowl when frightened.
  • noun A loud, harsh squeak or squall.
  • noun The American night-heron: same as quawk.

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

  • intransitive verb To utter a shrill, abrupt scream; to squeak harshly.
  • intransitive verb (Zoöl.), [Prov. Eng.] the missel turush; -- so called from its note when alarmed.
  • noun Act of squawking; a harsh squeak.
  • noun (Zoöl.) The American night heron. See under Night.
  • noun (Zoöl.), [Prov. Eng.] the bimaculate duck (Anas glocitans). It has patches of reddish brown behind, and in front of, each eye.

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

  • noun A shrill noise, especially made by a voice or bird; a yell, scream, or call.
  • noun aviation A four-digit transponder code used by aircraft for identification or transmission of emergency signals.
  • noun aviation An issue or complaint related to aircraft maintenance.
  • noun The American night heron.
  • verb To make a squawking noise; to yell, scream, or call out shrilly.
  • verb To speak out; to protest.
  • verb To report an infraction; to rat on or tattle; to disclose a secret.
  • verb aviation To set or transmit a four-digit transponder code. (Normally followed by the specific code in question.)

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

  • verb utter a harsh abrupt scream
  • noun informal terms for objecting
  • verb complain
  • noun the noise of squawking

Etymologies

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

[Imitative.]

Support

Help support Wordnik (and make this page ad-free) by adopting the word squawk.

Examples

  • The singing was bad enough - she sounded like an angry wasp trapped in a shoebox, butchering melodies with the ghoulish efficiency of Jeffrey Dahmer – but even though she no longer bursts into song, her incessant piercing squawk is still enough to make me want to slice my ears off and hurl them into another dimension.

    Charlie Brooker's Screen burn: Blind Date Charlie Brooker 2010

  • No twits of squirrels, not a squawk from the tops of the trees.

    HAVEN • by Kevin Shamel 2008

  • These four items are what everyone is talking about, but not much of a bark nor squawk from the mainstream media.

    Archive 2007-08-01 2007

  • Warren opened his mouth to respond, but a sudden squawk from the boat’s intercom made him stop.

    DELUGE (Part 31) – Brian Keene 2009

  • All of our cars and most shepherds’ mobile phones have inside them an electronic device we call a squawk box, which periodically transmits a fake phone call that’s encrypted but traceable.

    Edge Jeffery Deaver 2010

  • More thankfully still, when it does, Lincoln's first question to me the next morning is whether I was able to help the person I was trying to save, and when I say no, as I usually do, he gives me a squawk, which is what they call a hug on "SpongeBob", and tells me he hopes I have better luck next time.

    The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com 2010

  • More thankfully still, when it does, Lincoln's first question to me the next morning is whether I was able to help the person I was trying to save, and when I say no, as I usually do, he gives me a squawk, which is what they call a hug on "SpongeBob", and tells me he hopes I have better luck next time.

    The Full Feed from HuffingtonPost.com 2010

  • U.S. prosecutors were chided by a federal judge on Thursday for withholding information from six former Wall Street brokers and traders who were convicted last year in a scheme to misuse brokerage-firm "squawk" boxes.

    Judge Faults Prosecutors in 'Squawk Box' Case Amir Efrati 2010

  • U.S. prosecutors were chided by a federal judge on Thursday for withholding information from six former Wall Street brokers and traders who were convicted last year in a scheme to misuse brokerage-firm "squawk" boxes.

    Judge Faults Prosecutors in 'Squawk Box' Case Amir Efrati 2010

  • The criminal convictions of three former stockbrokers and three former members of a defunct day-trading firm's management will stand in a plot to misuse brokerage firm "squawk" boxes, a judge has ruled.

    Judge Denies New Trial in 'Squawk' Box Case 2010

Comments

Log in or sign up to get involved in the conversation. It's quick and easy.

  • The ambulation of squid.

    March 14, 2008

  • Some probably squander aimlessly.

    March 14, 2008

  • The American night-heron; quawk.

    January 29, 2013