[ adj ] deep and harsh sounding as if from shouting or illness or emotion <adj.all> gruff voicesthe dog's gruff barking hoarse cries makes all the instruments sound powerful but husky
Hoarse \Hoarse\, a. [Compar. {Hoarser}, superl. {Hoarsest}.] [OE. hors, also hos, has, AS. h[=a]s; akin to D. heesch, G. heiser, Icel. h[=a]ss, Dan. h[ae]s, Sw. hes. Cf. Prov. E. heazy.] 1. Having a harsh, rough, grating voice or sound, as when affected with a cold; making a rough, harsh cry or sound; as, the hoarse raven.
The hoarse resounding shore. --Dryden.
2. Harsh; grating; discordant; -- said of any sound.
Greg Williams, 22, of Billings, Mont., screamed himself hoarse while waving his pom-poms.
President Reagan is taking a decongestant for a cold that left him with a hoarse voice for a speech Monday to the annual convention of the American Legion.
Last month, she accepted a star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame, beaming though obviously ill and wearing a wig because she'd lost her hair from cancer therapy. "This is really quite a thrill," she said in a hoarse voice.
But her running mate, Virgilio Godoy of the Liberal Independent Party, is on the campaign trail and became hoarse over the weekend from his many public speeches.
"They should let the opposition shout themselves hoarse and hope that by September people will grow tired of the whole thing."
She sings, not often in tune, and with a voice that is notably hoarse in its upper notes even when speaking.