What does reveling mean?
“Reveling” is the present participle of “revel,” meaning to celebrate with great enthusiasm, often in a noisy and uninhibited way. It commonly describes people enjoying a party, holiday, victory, or other festive occasion: “The winners were reveling on the stage.” The word can also suggest taking intense delight in an experience or achievement, especially in the expression “reveling in.” Its connotations are generally positive, emphasizing joy, energy, communal pleasure, and a temporary escape from ordinary restraint. “Reveling” can sound more exuberant and boisterous than the neutral “celebrating.” In North American English, the spelling has one “l,” while British English commonly uses “revelling.” The word is especially useful when describing visible, uninhibited festivity rather than a restrained or formal commemoration.
verbTo celebrate enthusiastically and noisily, especially with other people. As a present participle, it can also mean engaged in lively celebration or taking great delight in something.
- To celebrate enthusiastically, especially in a lively or noisy group.
- To take great pleasure or delight in something.
"The crowd spent the evening reveling after the championship victory."
"They were still reveling late into the night when the music stopped."
"The report was reveling in the company’s unexpectedly strong results."
From the Latin for “to unroll,” “revel” originally meant to disclose a hidden truth before developing its modern sense of uninhibited celebration.
Reviewed by Deb Chak, Editor. AI-assisted content curated by RJS Tech Solutions LLP.
Where does reveling come from?
The underlying verb “revel” comes through Old French from Latin revolvere, originally meaning to unroll or disclose. The modern sense of celebrating arose later by developing the idea of unrestrained enjoyment or abandoning oneself to pleasure. Latin roots associated with revolvere also appear in English words such as “revolve” and “revolution,” while the spelling “reveling” is chiefly North American.
Related word forms
How reveling is actually used
Usually implies a festive, energetic, and uninhibited celebration. It is often used with “in,” as in “reveling in victory.” British English typically spells the present participle “revelling.”
Easily confused with reveling
“Reveling” means celebrating enthusiastically, whereas “revealing” means making something known or visible.