lament
Americanverb (used with object)
-
laments,
present (3rd person singular)
-
lamented,
past participle, past
-
lamenting
present participle
verb (used without object)
-
laments,
present (3rd person singular)
-
lamented,
past participle, past
-
lamenting
present participle
noun
-
laments
plural
-
an expression of grief or sorrow.
- Synonyms:
- moan, lamentation
-
a formal expression of sorrow or mourning, especially in verse or song; an elegy or dirge.
verb
noun
-
an expression of sorrow
-
a poem or song in which a death is lamented
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
-
lamentsimple
-
lamentssimple
-
have lamentedperfect
-
has lamentedperfect
-
am lamentingprogressive
-
are lamentingprogressive
-
is lamentingprogressive
-
have been lamentingperfect progressive
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has been lamentingperfect progressive
Past
-
lamentedsimple
-
had lamentedperfect
-
was lamentingprogressive
-
were lamentingprogressive
-
had been lamentingperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of lament
First recorded in 1520–30; (noun) from Latin lāmentum “plaint”; (verb) from Latin lāmentārī, derivative of lāmentum
Explanation
If you are really upset or sorry about something, you might lament it. A lament is full of regret and grief. If you lament something, then you feel sorry about it. You could lament a mistake you made, or you could lament a horrible thing that happened to a friend. Also, a lament is an expression of grief. So if you keep saying how sorry you are about something, someone could say, "Enough of your laments!" There's also an old literary form called "a lament," which expresses feelings of loss in a long dramatic poem.
Vocabulary lists containing lament
Night
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Christmas Carol Vocab: A Lyrical Lexicon
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The Alchemist
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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.
See Examples For:
While some lament the decline of suits and ties, others are relieved to ditch the starchy collars and pantyhose.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 7, 2026
Cassidy closed with what sounded like a lament.
From Slate ● Aug. 7, 2026
New graduates lament that while their college professors discouraged the use of AI tools, hiring managers applaud it.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 7, 2026
It’s not just a lament about loneliness; it’s a challenge to change your perspective and maybe your life.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 6, 2026
Sometimes, when the weight of my job becomes overwhelming, I begin to lament all the things lost when we conquered death.
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
The report laments that “health care has become unaffordable for millions of Americans even when they have insurance.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 16, 2026
In “Remake,” McElwee laments the hope that making “Photographic Memory” gave him, an aspiration that he was depicting his son on the cusp of finding his way through the dark.
From Salon ● Jul. 24, 2026
Later she laments how the revelation brought her to a low point in her life: “How could my blood do something so atrocious? How could my blood be the cause of other people’s bloodshed?”
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 22, 2026
"Blocks of flats are being built where there used to be one- or two-storey houses," he laments.
From Barron's ● Jul. 3, 2026
She shakes her head and laments, To think of all those people there to honor you, and your own parents could not take a night off from their jobs.
From "A Step from Heaven" by An Na
"That's the biggest disappointment of the evening," lamented Vrancken.
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
Others lamented the death of a “part of their childhood.”
From Salon ● Aug. 21, 2026
In the days leading up to the eclipse, many lamented that online retailers like Amazon were no longer offering speedy delivery options.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Aug. 12, 2026
This has been whispered about and lamented since the COVID-19 pandemic led to temporary theater closures across the country that have since become permanent, but it is rare to hear it expressed so candidly.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jul. 24, 2026
“It’s always a terrible thing when a scythe leaves us,” the High Blade lamented, “especially one as well-respected as Scythe Faraday.”
From "Scythe" by Neal Shusterman
We observe them lamenting how powerless they feel: Their medical skills can do some good, but not nearly enough.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 21, 2026
Some in Labour were unhappy when Lennon didn't make the ballot for this contesting, lamenting a lack of breadth in the contest.
From BBC ● Aug. 20, 2026
He then sent out the names of the districts being targeted, quietly lamenting a few typos.
From Barron's ● Aug. 16, 2026
She received dozens of letters lamenting the “good old days” of “American” recipes like cola-soaked pork chops, but she didn’t listen.
From Salon ● Aug. 6, 2026
For several hundred years commentators on the English language have been predicting, lamenting, or celebrating the imminent extinction of the subjunctive mood.
From "The Sense of Style" by Steven Pinker
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.
