Meaning & use
yelling at someone
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Meaning
phrasefixed phrase
shouting loudly and angrily at a person, often to show anger or frustration
Grammar: Use 'yell at' when the object is a person; use 'yell to' when you just want someone to hear you from far away.
Patterns
- yell at someone
- yell at someone for doing something
She was yelling at her brother for breaking her phone.
The coach was yelling at the players after they lost the game.
I heard someone yelling at the driver who cut them off.
Common combinations
- yell at someone for something
- He yelled at his son for coming home late.
- yell at someone in anger
- She rarely yells at anyone in anger.
- start yelling at someone
- Don't start yelling at me just because you're stressed.
- keep yelling at someone
- If you keep yelling at him, he'll stop listening.
Synonyms and how they differ
- shout at
- Very similar, but 'shout' can also be neutral (just loud), while 'yell' usually suggests anger or distress.
- scream at
- Stronger and higher-pitched than 'yell'; often suggests extreme emotion or panic.
- scold
- More formal and usually about telling someone off, not necessarily shouting.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: yelling at someone or yell to?
yelling at someone vs yell to
'Yell to someone' means shout so they can hear you from a distance; 'yell at someone' means shout angrily at them.
Practice
Which sentence uses the phrase correctly?
Choose one answer.
The correct pattern is 'yell at someone for something'. 'Yell to' would mean shouting so the friend could hear from far away, not expressing anger, and 'yell on' is not used.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “yelling at someone”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.