plaintive
Americanadjective
adjective
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of plaintive
First recorded in 1350–1400; plaint + -ive; replacing Middle English plaintif, from Middle French
Explanation
Plaintive is an adjective for describing someone or something with a pleading, sorrowful, desperate tone. If you have ever heard the plaintive howl of a wolf, then you know what we are getting at here. A plaint, as in complaint, is an expression of sorrow or grief. This word has also been bent a little at the ends to become plaintiff or complainant — the sufferer — in a lawsuit. So, whether you are hearing a plaintive tone in a courtroom, at a funeral, or in the wild (as in an animal's plaintive howl), you can be assured that someone or something desires something desperately.
Vocabulary lists containing plaintive
Grade 11, List 1
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Things Fall Apart
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Night
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Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
The plaintive cry is that young Scottish footballers get a chance to play a part in all this, that clubs trust their youth for a change.
From BBC ● Jul. 31, 2026
And decades later, that’s Uncle Larry’s lyrics behind the plaintive and gorgeously intricate “Yes I Will,” the album’s closer.
From Salon ● Jul. 29, 2026
Vida Miknevičiūtė’s bright, plaintive soprano made the Empress’s final triumph especially powerful.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 8, 2026
I’ve read the many plaintive pieces written about this boring, wholly-unworthy-of-the-Great-Golden-State field of gubernatorial candidates.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 7, 2026
He heard distant laughter, the plaintive sound of pipes.
From "A Clash of Kings" by George R.R. Martin
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
