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croon

[kroon]
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verb (used without object)
  1. to sing or hum in a soft, soothing voice: to croon to a baby.
  2. to sing in an evenly modulated, slightly exaggerated manner: Popular singers began crooning in the 1930s.
  3. to utter a low murmuring sound.
  4. Scot. and North England.
    1. to bellow; low.
    2. to lament; mourn.
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verb (used with object)
  1. to sing (a song) in a crooning manner.
  2. to lull by singing or humming to in a soft, soothing voice: to croon a child to sleep.
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noun
  1. the act or sound of crooning.
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Origin of croon

1350–1400; Middle English cronen < Middle Dutch: to lament
Related formscroon·er, nouncroon·ing·ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018

Related Words

hum, murmur, wail, roar, bellow, lull

Examples from the Web for croon

Contemporary Examples

Historical Examples

  • And croon they did through the long crowded way to Covent Garden.

    The Coryston Family

    Mrs. Humphry Ward

  • Then she began to croon to it, swinging it gently from side to side.

  • The croon of the old lady thrummed in his ears with endless repetition.

    The Blind Spot

    Austin Hall

  • Wake, then, if you may not sleep, but only to watch the moon rising and hear the croon of the sea.

    The Debatable Land

    Arthur Colton

  • Sometimes there was a croon in the voice, sometimes a touch of decrepit anger.

    The Hill of Venus

    Nathan Gallizier

British Dictionary definitions for croon

croon

verb
  1. to sing or speak in a soft low tone
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noun
  1. a soft low singing or humming
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Derived Formscrooner, noun

Word Origin

C14: via Middle Dutch crōnen to groan; compare Old High German chrōnan to chatter, Latin gingrīre to cackle (of geese)
Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

Word Origin and History for croon

v.

c.1400, originally Scottish, from Middle Dutch kronen "to lament, mourn," perhaps imitative. Originally "to bellow like a bull" as well as "to utter a low, murmuring sound" (mid-15c.). Popularized by Robert Burns. Sense evolved to "lament," then to "sing softly and sadly." Related: Crooned; crooning.

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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper