squawk
/skwoːk/
Word Rarity
Very rare
Frequency: Zipf frequency 2.42 in modern English
22
Scrabble Score
6
Letters
1
Syllables
6
Unique Chars
Meaning
noun
A shrill noise, especially made by a voice or bird. If made by a bird, it typically signals discomfort or anger; a yell, scream, or call.
noun
A four-digit transponder code used by aircraft for identification or transmission of emergency signals.
noun
An issue or complaint related to aircraft maintenance.
noun
The American night heron.
Example Sentences
- "That was the last roundup for McCutcheon’s Cresswell; it never moved from that field again. Not that there was any squawk from the landlord; the two of them owned it, of course."
- "We think instructors should stress the importance of writeups on all maintenance squawks after the completion of each flight. More important, something should be done by the aircraft operator to correct such squawks."
- "The function-hiding code above, for instance, goes through a different (but widely used) compiler with nary a squawk."
- "The hens woke up squawking with terror because they had all dreamed simultaneously of hearing a gun go off in the distance."
- ""I'll slit your throat if you squawk on us," Krantz threatened."
- "That way, if you type = instead of ==, the compiler will squawk because you can't assign something to a constant."
Etymology
Origin
Regional Pronunciation
- American English: /skwoːk/
- British English: /skwɔːk/
Usage
- Informal
- Intransitive verb
- Slang
- American usage
- Dated
Inflected Forms
squawks (plural)
squawks (present, singular)
squawking (participle, present)
squawked (participle, past)
squawked (past)
no-table-tags (table tags)
glossary (inflection template)
squawked (first person, past)
squawkest (archaic, present)
squawked (past, second person)
squawkedst (archaic, past)
squawketh (archaic, present)