lamenting

[luh-men-ting]

adjective

1. speaking of something with sorrow, regret, or disappointment; evoking feelings of this kind.

   After the controlled mayhem of their first number, the band went into a laid-back groove with a lamenting melody on the sax.

   As sure as the season changes, we are once again hearing the lamenting call of British Columbia's most vocal crusader against salmon farming.

2. mourning or grieving over something, especially death or profound loss or suffering.

   In some countries, people follow the custom of leading a procession with the decorated body of the dead, for the benefit of the lamenting relatives.

noun

1. the act of grieving or of expressing regret or disappointment.

   Complain and point the finger all you want, but this is not a problem that lamenting will solve.

Other Word Forms

• lamentingly adverb

Word History and Origins

Origin of lamenting¹

First recorded in 1510–20; lament ( def. ) + -ing ² ( def. ) for the adjective senses; lament ( def. ) + -ing ¹ ( def. ) for the noun sense

Example Sentences

“Everyone hates the Jews, everyone’s fine with using gay slurs,” he says, lamenting that he no longer feels purpose if there’s no wokeness to contest.

From Los Angeles Times

Most of the commenters were men calling her stupid and lamenting that the “woke” media is ruining women.

From Salon

When Anni Albers published her theoretical magnum opus “On Weaving” in 1965, she was already lamenting the loss of our tactile sensibilities, which have undeniably worsened in the digital era.

From Los Angeles Times

Trade unions have called a strike to protest the government's "brutal" budget plans, lamenting that France "has been sinking into a profound social and democratic crisis".

From BBC

He said it himself afterwards, bemoaning the standard of his team's attacking game, lamenting the absence of creativity while concluding that this is "not the way Celtic play."

From BBC