What does squawk mean?
Word: Squawk
Part of Speech: Verb
Meaning: Squawk means to make a loud, harsh cry, the way a parrot or a hen does.
How do you spell squawk?
Syllables: squawk
Tricky part: The ending rhymes with walk and talk, yet it is not spelt alk. Students who copy those words go wrong.
Watch out for: squalk, squork
Memory tip: A hawk can squawk: both end in the same three letters, a, w and k.
Squawk in a sentence
Example 1: The parrots in the guava tree squawk every morning before sunrise.
Example 2: Our neighbour's hens began to squawk when the cat walked past the coop.
Example 3: The baby crows squawk loudly whenever their parents bring food.
Fun Fact
Squawk is an imitative word: it is thought to have been made up in the early 1800s to copy the harsh sound itself.
Practise the CREST Way
Mingle-Mangle
Form a meaningful word from the jumbled letters:
wqaksu
a) squeak
b) squat
c) squash
d) squawk
Show answer
d) squawk. The letters include a w and a k but no e, h or t, so only one option fits.
Word Cookie
Find the misspelt word in the sentence:
The parrot next door starts to sqawk whenever the doorbell rings.
a) whenever
b) doorbell
c) sqawk
d) parrot
Show answer
c) sqawk. In English a q is always followed by a u, and this word is no exception.
Word Connection
Choose the synonym of the word:
squawk
a) whisper
b) hum
c) screech
d) murmur
Show answer
c) screech. A screech is loud and harsh; whisper, hum and murmur are all soft sounds.
Spell-o-Spell
Choose the correctly spelt word:
a) squawk
b) vulcher
c) migrasion
d) plumege
Show answer
a) squawk. The bird words are each off by a letter or two: plumage ends in age, migration ends in tion and vulture ends in ture.
Multiple Choice Questions
1. Which of these creatures would you expect to squawk?
a) a goose at feeding time
b) a grazing cow
c) a swimming fish
d) a sleeping cat
Show answer
a) a goose at feeding time
2. The class pet began to squawk when the bell rang. How did it sound?
a) quiet and calm
b) soft and sweet
c) low and gentle
d) sharp and grating
Show answer
d) sharp and grating
