shout
Preserved but no longer current.
Meaning · English
To pay for drink round. "It’s my SHOUT," says he who pays. Possibly because the payer originally SHOUTED to the bar-keeper of an hotel to score the drink to him.—Australian, but now general.
Era: ca. 1874 (Victorian)
Where it’s used:
Origin
British & Irish English
Sources & notes
Historical definition reproduced from Hotten’s The Slang Dictionary (1874, public domain; Project Gutenberg #42108, retrieved 2026-07-31). Reflects the attitudes of its era.
Common questions
What does “shout” mean?
To pay for drink round. "It’s my SHOUT," says he who pays. Possibly because the payer originally SHOUTED to the bar-keeper of an hotel to score the drink to him.—Australian, but now general.
Is “shout” formal or informal?
No register label has been reviewed yet — treat it as neutral and check the usage notes above.