groan
noun
a low, mournful sound uttered in pain or grief.
had been groaning
-
past perfect progressiveof groan.past perfect progressive
Used to describe an action that was ongoing continuously in the past up until another past event interrupted it.
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.
Every one looked after him, but no one smiled or said a word, and the inquisitive postilion Antipka reported next morning in the kitchen that the dumb man had been groaning all night.
From Stories by Foreign Authors: Russian by Nikolai Vasilievich Gogol
And almost immediately after, encouraged by this initial success, the whole of the Netherlands which had been groaning under the Spanish rule rose in rebellion and claimed as their rightful ruler the Prince of Orange.
From A Treasury of Heroes and Heroines A Record of High Endeavour and Strange Adventure from 500 B.C. to 1920 A.D. by Clayton Edwards
For years the Russians had been groaning under heavy taxes.
From Rabbi and Priest A Story by Milton Goldsmith
Yet the accumulated wrongs under which the nation had been groaning during the reign of his predecessors, were to be avenged in his person,—innocent, heroic sufferer that he was.
From Ernest Linwood or, The Inner Life of the Author by Caroline Lee Hentz
All this time Nannie, who still lay motionless, had been groaning in what was evidently genuine pain.
From A Duel by Richard Marsh
