Meanings
comparative more boisterous · superlative most boisterous · alternative obsolete boistrous
- Full of energy; exuberant; noisy.
Open carriages tend to be draughty and inadequately heated. The passenger in them has no escape from the annoyance of squalling babies, boisterous drunks, and riotous teddy-boys, who may be at the far end of the coach but whose din cannot be shut out.
1959 February 28, “Letters to the Editor: Open-Type Coaches on B.R.”, in Railway Magazine, page 135Synonyms: rollicking, robustious
- Characterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy.
ſtaggering like a quiuering Aſpen leafe, Fearing the force of Boreas boiſtrous blaſts.
c. 1587–1588 (date written), [Christopher Marlowe], Tamburlaine the Great. […] The First Part […], 2nd edition, part 1, London: […] [R. Robinson for] Richard Iones, […], published 1592, →OCLC; reprinted as Tamburlaine the Great (A Scolar Press Facsimile), Menston, Yorkshire; London: Scolar Press, 1973, →ISBN, Act II, scene iv1 more example
A new and elegant dress had been provided by Lady Anne for the second day, but it was of less costly material, and, by the same rule, considerably slighter; so that Fanchette suggested the idea of substituting a slip to make it equally warm, as the weather had set in cold and boisterous.
1842, [anonymous collaborator of Letitia Elizabeth Landon], chapter XLI, in Lady Anne Granard; or, Keeping up Appearances. […], volume II, London: Henry Colburn, […], →OCLC, page 219 - Having or resembling animalic exuberance.
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveFull of energy; exuberant; noisy.
More synonyms by meaning
adjectivenoisy and lacking in restraint or discipline
adjectivefull of rough and exuberant animal spirits
Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.
Origin
- Old Frenchboitous“limping; having a rough, uneven surface”
- Anglo-Normanboystous
- Middle Englishboistous“crude, unrefined”
- Middle Englishboistres
- Englishboisterous
From Middle English boistres, an alteration of Middle English boistous (“crude, unrefined”), of uncertain origin. Likely from Anglo-Norman boystous, bustous (“rough, in a crude state, disabled, paralysed, unable to walk, lame”), Old French boitous (“limping; having a rough, uneven surface”).
More words from Middle English, Anglo-Norman, Old French
Full word history & related roots →Translations
Ancient Greek λάβρος, λάβρος
- λάβρος (lábros)full of energy; noisy
- λάβρος (lábros)characterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Bulgarian шумен, буен
- шумен (šumen)full of energy; noisy
- буен (buen)full of energy; noisy
- бурен (buren)characterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Catalan sorollós, escandalós
- sorollósfull of energy; noisy
- escandalósfull of energy; noisy
Chinese Mandarin 喧鬧的, 愛鬧的 /爱闹的
- 喧鬧的 (xuānnào de)full of energy; noisy
- 愛鬧的 /爱闹的 (àinào de)full of energy; noisy
- 狂歡的 /狂欢的 (kuánghuān de)full of energy; noisy
- 狂暴的 (kuángbào de)full of energy; noisy
- 猛烈的 (měngliè de)full of energy; noisy
- 哄然的 (hōngrán de)full of energy; noisy
Czech bouřlivý, rozpustilý
- bouřlivýfull of energy; noisy
- rozpustilýfull of energy; noisy
- bouřlivýcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- divokýcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- rozbouřenýcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- nevázanýcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- divokýhaving or resembling animal exuberance
Dutch driest, stormachtig
- driestfull of energy; noisy
- stormachtigcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Esperanto bruema
- bruemafull of energy; noisy
Finnish äänekäs, remuisa
- äänekäsfull of energy; noisy
- remuisafull of energy; noisy
- riehakascharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
French bruyant, tapageur
- bruyantfull of energy; noisy
- tapageurfull of energy; noisy
- turbulentcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- agitécharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
German ungestüm, ausgelassen
- ungestümfull of energy; noisy
- ausgelassenfull of energy; noisy
- lebendigfull of energy; noisy
- lebhaftfull of energy; noisy
- agitiertfull of energy; noisy
- lautfull of energy; noisy
- polterndfull of energy; noisy
- stürmischcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- tosendcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- wildcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- ungestümcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- aufrührerischcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Italian esuberante, chiassoso
- esuberantefull of energy; noisy
- chiassosofull of energy; noisy
- turbolentocharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- tempestosocharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Japanese 騒々しい, 喧しい
- 騒々しい (sōzōshii)full of energy; noisy
- 喧しい (yakamashii)full of energy; noisy
- うるさい (urusai)full of energy; noisy
- 賑やかな (nigiyaka na)full of energy; noisy
Korean 떠들썩하다, 격렬하다
- 떠들썩하다 (tteodeulsseokhada)full of energy; noisy
- 격렬하다 (gyeongnyeolhada)characterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Latin bacchabundus
- bacchabundusfull of energy; noisy
Māori tarakaka, tūperepere
- tarakakafull of energy; noisy
- tūpereperecharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- tuarangarangacharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Polish hałaśliwy, dziki
- hałaśliwyfull of energy; noisy
- dzikihaving or resembling animal exuberance
- zwierzęcyhaving or resembling animal exuberance
Portuguese ruidoso, espalhafatoso
- ruidosofull of energy; noisy
- espalhafatosofull of energy; noisy
- tumultuosocharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Russian шу́мный, бу́рный
- шу́мный (šúmnyj)full of energy; noisy
- бу́рный (búrnyj)full of energy; noisy
- бу́йный (bújnyj)full of energy; noisy
- шумли́вый (šumlívyj)full of energy; noisy
- бу́рный (búrnyj)characterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- бу́йный (bújnyj)characterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
- неи́стовый (neístovyj)characterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Spanish bullicioso, embullador
- bulliciosofull of energy; noisy
- embulladorfull of energy; noisy
- bullerofull of energy; noisy
Swedish stormig
- stormigcharacterized by violence and agitation; wild; stormy
Ukrainian гомінливий
- гомінливий (hominlyvyj)full of energy; noisy
Vietnamese ầm ầm
- ầm ầmfull of energy; noisy
Cite this entry
boisterous. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 4, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boisterous
“boisterous.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boisterous. Accessed November 4, 2026.
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “boisterous,” accessed November 4, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/boisterous.
Source: boisterous on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.