groan
Americannoun
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groans
plural
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a low, mournful sound uttered in pain or grief.
the groans of dying soldiers.
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a deep, inarticulate sound uttered in derision, disapproval, desire, etc.
-
a deep grating or creaking sound due to a sudden or continued overburdening, as with a great weight.
We heard the groan of the ropes as the crane lowered the heavy cargo into the ship's hold.
verb (used without object)
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groans,
present (3rd person singular)
-
groaned,
past participle, past
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groaning
present participle
-
to utter a deep, mournful sound expressive of pain or grief.
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to make a deep, inarticulate sound expressive of derision, disapproval, desire, etc.
-
to make a sound resembling a groan; resound harshly.
The steps of the old house groaned under my weight.
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to be overburdened or overloaded.
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to suffer greatly or lamentably.
groaning under an intolerable burden.
verb (used with object)
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groans,
present (3rd person singular)
-
groaned,
past participle, past
-
groaning
present participle
noun
-
a prolonged stressed dull cry expressive of agony, pain, or disapproval
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a loud harsh creaking sound, as of a tree bending in the wind
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informal a grumble or complaint, esp a persistent one
verb
-
to utter (low inarticulate sounds) expressive of pain, grief, disapproval, etc
they all groaned at Larry's puns
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(intr) to make a sound like a groan
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(intr, usually foll by beneath or under) to be weighed down (by) or suffer greatly (under)
the country groaned under the dictator's rule
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informal (intr) to complain or grumble
Synonym Usage
Groan, moan refer to sounds indicating deep suffering. A groan is a brief, strong, deep-throated sound emitted involuntarily under pressure of pain or suffering: The wounded man groaned when they lifted him. A moan is a prolonged, more or less continuous, low, inarticulate sound indicative of suffering, either physical or mental: She was moaning after the operation. She did not weep, but moaned softly.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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groansimple
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groanssimple
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have groanedperfect
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has groanedperfect
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am groaningprogressive
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are groaningprogressive
-
is groaningprogressive
-
have been groaningperfect progressive
-
has been groaningperfect progressive
Past
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groanedsimple
-
had groanedperfect
-
was groaningprogressive
-
were groaningprogressive
-
had been groaningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of groan
First recorded before 900; Middle English gronen, Old English grānian; cognate with German greinen “to whine”
Explanation
A groan is a sound of pain or disapproval that doesn't consist of words, usually heard after homework is assigned or bad jokes are told. People groan for lots of reasons: headaches, stomachaches, traffic jams, and bad news are just a few groan-worthy things that can provoke that moaning, "uuugghhhhh" sound. If someone is complaining about something, you could say she's "moaning and groaning." People like to moan and groan about the weather, politics, and just about everything else.
Vocabulary lists containing groan
Instead of "Said": Words For Sad Speech
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100 SAT Words Beginning with "G"
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Excerpt from "A Raisin in the Sun"
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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:
As I set off, the shoes emitted a peppy clip-clop and a satisfying groan of distressed leather with each step.
From Slate ● Jun. 5, 2026
Slowly, “Undertone” reveals itself to be all style and very little substance, with enough baffling character choices to make you groan.
From Salon ● Mar. 15, 2026
Of course it is, we all groan together, happily.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2025
I used to groan when it was my turn to be the meeting note-taker in a previous job.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 26, 2025
I groan at the realization that I’ll have to explain this, crumpling into Dara, who is nice enough to give me a hug.
From "Legendary Frybread Drive-In" by Cynthia Leitich Smith
“Well, what exactly are you talking about, Whoopi?” he answered, generating groans from the studio’s audience.
From Salon ● Jun. 18, 2026
But even here, the long arm of the crisis is visible, with the TV reception periodically freezing, triggering loud groans from supporters clad in the yellow Brazilian jerseys of stars Vinicius Junior, Neymar and others.
From Barron's ● Jun. 14, 2026
As a man with a booming voice who gave his name only as Sheriff slammed down a piece to the groans of other players, artillery crackled in the distance.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 12, 2026
The academic bookshelf groans with the weight of studies of the phenomenon, but the seminal analysis of the topic remains a 1997 paper by economist Severin Borenstein of UC Berkeley and his colleagues.
From Los Angeles Times ● May 7, 2026
The guy sitting behind me groans and mutters about how much he hates writing and thought this was history class, but Mr. Griffiths ignores him and keeps speaking.
From "Amina's Song" by Hena Khan
They tried to spend the night inside, but the roof groaned and terrified them.
From Barron's ● Aug. 11, 2026
The door groaned open, and out crawled Ernesto, blinking into the warm Southern California air.
From Slate ● Jan. 27, 2026
In 2017, when he asked if Tesla would use SpaceX tech in its vehicles, Musk groaned.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jan. 23, 2026
Kuang was taking readers to hell in her newest book, I groaned.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 22, 2025
Gertner went off with the documents explaining CDOs to potential investors and sweated and groaned and heaved and suffered.
From "The Big Short" by Michael Lewis
The kitchen sinks aren’t working, and the plumbing is simultaneously screeching and groaning.
From Salon ● Jun. 28, 2026
For ninety minutes at least, supporters and critics found themselves watching the same screen, celebrating the same attacks and groaning at the same missed opportunities.
From Barron's ● Jun. 21, 2026
I’m not sure it’s a hard rule, but it feels like one when considering the silly groaning over defending champion and freshly-crowned back-to-back NBA MVP Shai Gilgeous-Alexander.
From The Wall Street Journal ● May 18, 2026
Jenrick managed to be late to his own defection, in the latest dollop of farce on a day groaning with drama, jeopardy, skulduggery and plotting.
From BBC ● Jan. 15, 2026
He was eight centimeters taller than me, but he could move so silently sometimes, like he wasn’t walking on the same cheap, groaning floorboards as the rest of us.
From "The City Beautiful" by Aden Polydoros
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.
