Shrill

Shrill is an adjective used to describe a sound or voice that is unusually high in pitch and piercing, often to the point of being unpleasant or irritating. It can refer to voices, alarms, whistles, or other tones with strong high-frequency content. In everyday usage, a shrill sound is perceived as sharp, penetrating, or emphatic rather than mellow.

The term carries a negative or critical connotation in many contexts. It is frequently used to describe tones that are perceived as excessive, strident, or overpowering. Because of its gendered associations, “shrill” has also been discussed in debates about rhetoric, where it is sometimes used to cast a woman’s voice as unreasonable or aggressive, a usage that has been criticized as applying double standards.

In acoustics or music, a shrill timbre is associated with energy concentrated in the higher harmonics, producing brightness or edge. Distinctions are made with related terms such as “piercing,” “squeaky,” or “high-pitched,” each carrying slightly different nuances.

The word is also encountered in popular culture, including the title of the 2019 Hulu television series Shrill, based on Lindy West’s memoir Shrill: Notes from a Loud Woman. Some writers reserve “shrill” for particularly forced or strident quality, while others use it more loosely to describe any voice or sound that stands out because of its high pitch.