Outcry

How to spell outcry

6 letters · 2 syllables

How to pronounce outcry

Say the part in capitals loudest.

What does outcry mean?

1. nounA strong and widespread expression of public anger or protest.
2. nounA loud shout or clamour raised by a person or crowd.

Outcry in a sentence

• The sudden tax rise provoked a national outcry.

• A sudden outcry from the back of the hall startled the speaker.

• There was a fierce public outcry over the factory closure.

• The referee's mistake drew an immediate outcry from the crowd.

Where does outcry come from?

Language of origin: Germanic

Outcry is a transparent English compound, formed by joining the native adverb-prefix 'out', meaning 'forth' or 'aloud', with the noun 'cry'. The verb 'cry' itself came into Middle English through Old French 'crier', meaning 'to call out' or 'to shout', which traces back to the Latin 'quiritare', often explained as 'to wail' or to call on the citizens (the Quirites) for help. The compound 'outcry' appears in Middle English around the 1300s, originally meaning a literal loud shout or clamour raised by a crowd. Over time the sense broadened from physical noise to the figurative meaning we use most today: a strong public protest or expression of anger. The spelling stays simple because both halves are everyday English words, so the trap is mainly remembering it is written as one solid word rather than two.

How the word is built

• out- (forth, loudly)
• cry (a shout or loud call)