shrillest
Highest and sharpest
Shrillest is the superlative form of shrill—the most high-pitched and piercing.
Describes sounds that cut through other noise unpleasantly: the shrillest whistle I've ever heard.
Extended to voices or rhetoric that seem strident or harsh: The shrillest critics dominated the debate.
High, harsh cry
- shriekShrill, piercing cry
- squealShrill, piercing cry
- screamingLoud, shrill vocalizing
- wailingProlonged mournful crying
keening · screeching · whistling · ear-splitting · penetrating · cutting · sharp · acute
Harsh and jarring
- discordantLacking musical agreement
- dissonantLacking harmonic agreement
- harshUnpleasantly severe or rough
- gratingCrossed bars or harsh
abrasive · irritating · annoying · jarring · raucous · clashing · inharmonious · offensive
Artificially elevated singing register
- sopranoHighest female voice range
- trebleHigh frequency range
- piccoloSmall, high-pitched woodwind
- whistleShrill air-blown sounder
squeak · chirp · tweet · whine · coloratura · counter-tenor · flute · tinnitus
screech
High, harsh cry
wailing · keening · screeching · whistling · ear-splitting · penetrating · cutting · sharp · acute · needle-like
cacophonous
Harsh and jarring
- discordantLacking musical agreement
- dissonantLacking harmonic agreement
- harshUnpleasantly severe or rough
grating · abrasive · irritating · annoying · jarring · raucous · clashing · inharmonious · offensive · unbearable
falsetto
Artificially elevated singing register
whistle · squeak · chirp · tweet · whine · coloratura · counter-tenor · flute · tinnitus · overtones
alarm
Urgent warning signal
insistent · desperate · frantic · panicked · hysterical · demanding · piercing · attention-grabbing · startling · alarming
screamer
One who shrieks loudly
- harpyPredatory mythical bird-woman
- bansheeDeath-foretelling Irish spirit
- harridanIll-tempered older woman
scold · nag · termagant · fishwife · crone · virago · hectoring · scolding · berating · haranguing