叫ぶ
Meaning in Englishshout, cry out, yell
Animated kanji stroke order
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Word context
What it means
叫ぶ (sakebu) answers the question 'What does 叫ぶ mean?' by denoting the act of producing a loud, forceful vocal sound to express emotion, alert others, or call attention; it describes the physical action of raising one's voice rather than a quiet or subtle utterance and is used when the voice is meant to carry or to break through silence.
Main meanings
- To call out loudly to attract attention or warn someone without implying intent to harm.
- To cry out from sudden pain, fear, or surprise as an involuntary exclamation.
- To vocally protest, demand, or express strong emotion in public or collective contexts (e.g., demonstrations).
- Figuratively, to 'cry out' about a grievance or urgent problem in speech or writing.
How to use it
Common in everyday speech, journalism, fiction, and emergency contexts, 叫ぶ (sakebu) is used when describing someone who raises their voice strongly; it appears in both casual spoken accounts and formal descriptions of events, though in polite conversation speakers may choose milder verbs or phrases to avoid sounding aggressive.
Variants and close terms
- 喚く (wameku): to bawl or make a loud commotion (more chaotic/agitated than 叫ぶ).
- 大声を出す (oogoe o dasu): to raise one's voice (a descriptive phrase rather than a single verb).
- 囁く (sasayaku): to whisper (antonym—very quiet vocalization).
Composition
- 叫 (sake) — character meaning 'shout' or 'cry out', built around the 'mouth' radical indicating vocal action.
- the ending ぶ is the phonetic/inflectional element that turns the root into a godan verb, so together 叫ぶ (sakebu) expresses 'to perform the act of shouting'.
Word class
verb (Godan u-verb, intransitive) (動詞・五段活用・自動詞)