Ways to say it
| Spanish | IPA |
|---|---|
| gritar | /ɡɾiˈtaɾ/ |
| alaridar | /alaɾidaɾ/ (from spelling rules) |
| desgañitarse | /desɡaɲitaɾse/ (from spelling rules) |
| desgañifarse | /desɡaɲifaɾse/ (from spelling rules) |
| desgalillarse | /desɡaliʝaɾse/ (from spelling rules) |
| huchear | /ut͡ʃeˈaɾ/ |
| baladrar | /balaˈdɾaɾ/ |
The most common way to express the act of screaming or yelling is with gritar, which can also mean to yell at someone. If you are describing a piercing, high-pitched shriek often caused by intense pain or terror, alaridar is more specific. To describe the act of screaming until your throat is strained or damaged, use the idiomatic verb desgañitarse. For a more colloquial or derogatory way to describe someone making loud, senseless or unpleasant noise, you can use baladrar.
Which one should you use?
While gritar is the general term for both screaming and shouting or yelling, alaridar is more intense and implies a piercing sound. For the specific action of screaming until one is hoarse, use desgañitarse.
Is there a formal and an informal way to say it?
For a formal context, such as expressing loud shouting or voicing strong opinions, you can use vociferar. In informal settings, chillar is often used to describe screams or shouts and the phrase gritar a todo pulmón is an informal way to say 'to scream at the top of one's lungs'. On the other end of the spectrum, baladrar is a colloquial and somewhat derogatory way to describe noisy shouting.
Related words
How do you pronounce it?
/ɡɾiˈtaɾ/
Did you know?
- The term baladrar is quite colorful, as it is linguistically linked to the behavior of sheep, effectively calling a person's scream 'bleating'.
- While gritar is the general term for screaming, in many Spanish-speaking cultures, shouting in public is often viewed as a sign of passion or authenticity rather than just anger.
- The intense verb desgañitarse comes from garganta, meaning 'throat', but incorporates the root gañir, which refers to the howling of a dog.
Examples in context
- Tom va a gritar.Tom will scream.This sentence shows the use of gritar for a future action.Tatoeba #5015621 by don_ramon, translation #2257560 by CK
- Ella le oyó gritar.She heard him scream.This sentence shows how to use gritar to describe an action being heard.Tatoeba #892137 by Shishir, translation #887196 by CK
- Hoy tengo que gritar.I have to scream today.This sentence demonstrates the use of gritar to express a necessity.Tatoeba #9287584 by Javea, translation #9344684 by DJ_Saidez
- La multitud vociferó en contra de la injusticiaThe crowd screamed out against the injustice
- ¡Deja de chillar! Me asustasStop screaming! You're scaring me
- ¡Gritó a todo pulmón cuando ganó el premio!He screamed at the top of his lungs when he won the prize!
- Estaba tan asustada que me puse a gritarI was so scared that I started to scream
- Todos los niños estaban chillando de emociónAll the children were screaming with excitement
- Cuando vio la araña, soltó un grito que se escuchó en toda la casaWhen he saw the spider, he let out a scream that was heard throughout the house
- El cantante vociferó sus opiniones políticas en el escenarioThe singer screamed his political views on stage
- En el parque de diversiones, la gente gritaba a todo pulmón en la montaña rusaAt the amusement park, people screamed at the top of their lungs on the rollercoaster
- ¡Deja de chillar! No es para tantoStop screaming! It's not that bad
- 15 more sentences on Tatoeba
Example conversation
María and Javier are watching a scary movie together.
- MaríaNo quiero gritar de miedo.I don't want to scream with fear.
- JavierEs normal gritar en esta película.It's normal to scream in this movie.
- María¡Mira! ¡Voy a gritar ahora!Look! I'm going to scream now!
- Javier¡No grites tan fuerte, María!Don't scream so loud, María!
Sources
- Wiktionary, “scream” translations and entries gritar, desgañitarse, huchear, baladrar, CC BY-SA 4.0, dump of 2026-09-26.
- IPA marked “from spelling rules” is derived from standard Spanish spelling, where Wiktionary gives none.
- Example sentences: Tatoeba CC BY 2.0 FR.
