caterwaul
ca·ter·waul/ˈkæt.ɚ.wɔl/verb, noun
caterwaul is spelled C-A-T-E-R-W-A-U-L: 9 letters and 3 syllables (ca·ter·waul). It appears about once in every 87 million words in written English, the 297,763rd most frequent word form (wordfreq, 2021 data). As a verb, caterwaul means “To cry as cats in heat; to make a harsh, offensive noise” (English Wiktionary, September 2026).
How many letters and syllables are in caterwaul?
| Letters | 9: C-A-T-E-R-W-A-U-L |
|---|---|
| Syllables | 3: ca·ter·waul |
| In writing | about once in every 87 million words; the 297,763rd most frequent word form |
| Wrong spellings searched | none measured in search |
Sources: letters and syllables from the English Wiktionary's hyphenation or pronunciation; written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How common is caterwaul?
Caterwaul appears about once in every 87 million words in written English, the 297,763rd most frequent word form in the list.
Source: written frequency: wordfreq 3.1 (a 2021 snapshot of Wikipedia, subtitles, news, books, web text and social media).
How do you pronounce caterwaul?
- UK /ˈkæt.ə.wɔːl/
- US /ˈkæt.ɚ.wɔl/
- /ˈkæt.ɚ.wɑl/
Caterwaul has 3 syllables, split ca·ter·waul in writing.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Recordings: En-us-caterwaul.ogg, LL-Q1860_(eng)-Vealhurl-caterwaul.wav, Wikimedia Commons (author and licence on each file's page).
Forms of caterwaul
- caterwauls present, singular, he/she/it, plural
- caterwauling participle, present
- caterwauled participle, past
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
What does caterwaul mean?
The meanings the English Wiktionary records, quoted as written there (source below).
verb
- 1
To cry as cats in heat; to make a harsh, offensive noise.
- 2
To have a noisy argument, like cats.
noun
- 1
A yowling.
- 2
A noisy quarrel.
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).
Caterwaul in Spanish, French, German and Portuguese
| Language | Words |
|---|---|
| French | feuler , faire du chahut |
| German | Katzenjammer |
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract). Translations are Wiktionary's, by sense; a linked word has its own PlainSpell page.
Where does caterwaul come from?
From Middle English caterwrawen, from cater (“cat”) + wrawen, wrawlen (“cry like a cat”), equivalent to cat + waul. Compare Low German katerwaulen (“to cry like a cat”) and Middle Dutch cater (“tomcat”) (Dutch kater).
Source: English Wiktionary, dump of September 2, 2026 (CC BY-SA 4.0), through kaikki.org (Wiktextract).