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growl

(groul)

1. The low, guttural, menacing sound made by an animal: the growl of a dog.

2. A gruff surly utterance: The desk officer answered my greeting with a growl.

v. growled, growl·ing, growls

v.intr.

1. To emit a low guttural sound or utterance.

2. To speak in an angry or surly manner.

v.tr.

To utter by growling: growled the orders.

[Middle English groule, grollen, to rumble, growl, probably from Old French grouler, of Germanic origin.]

growly adj.

Indo-European & Semitic Roots Appendices

Thousands of entries in the dictionary include etymologies that trace their origins back to reconstructed proto-languages. You can obtain more information about these forms in our online appendices:

Indo-European Roots

Semitic Roots

The Indo-European appendix covers nearly half of the Indo-European roots that have left their mark on English words. A more complete treatment of Indo-European roots and the English words derived from them is available in our Dictionary of Indo-European Roots.

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