A.Word.A.Day --ululate

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ululate

PRONUNCIATION:

(UHL-uh-layt, YOOL-)

MEANING:

verb intr.: To howl or wail.

ETYMOLOGY:

From Latin ululare (to howl or shriek), of imitative origin. Earliest documented use: 1623.

NOTES:

Ululation with a distinctive trilling sound is performed in many cultures in celebration (video) and in mourning (video).

USAGE:

"Bells rang and the peasantry ululated their pleasure beneath battleship grey skies. Past imperious London buildings, the state coach clattered, followed by the Household Cavalry pompously bobbing. Kate practised waving, the one-word job description of monarchy."
Robert McNeil; Rousing Stuff; The Herald (Glasgow, Scotland); Apr 30, 2011.

See more usage examples of ululate in Vocabulary.com's dictionary.

A THOUGHT FOR TODAY:

There is nothing more agreeable in life than to make peace with the Establishment - and nothing more corrupting. -A.J.P. Taylor, historian (1906-1990)

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