moan
Americannoun
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moans
plural
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a prolonged, low sound uttered from physical or mental suffering.
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a prolonged, low sound uttered from any other strong physical or mental sensation, especially pleasure.
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any prolonged, low sound.
The alarming moan of the engines suggested they'd break down soon.
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complaint or lamentation.
Despite last year's moan about how much effort Christmas is, I'm feeling up to it this year.
verb (used without object)
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moans,
present (3rd person singular)
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moaned,
past participle, past
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moaning
present participle
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to make a prolonged, low sound from physical or mental suffering.
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to make a prolonged, low sound from any other strong physical or mental sensation, especially pleasure.
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(of inanimate objects) to make a prolonged, low sound.
The wind moaned through the trees.
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to complain.
I may moan about the weather here, but at least it doesn't get hot.
verb (used with object)
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moans,
present (3rd person singular)
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moaned,
past participle, past
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moaning
present participle
noun
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a low prolonged mournful sound expressive of suffering or pleading
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any similar mournful sound, esp that made by the wind
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a grumble or complaint
verb
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to utter (words) in a low mournful manner
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(intr) to make a sound like a moan
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(usually intr) to grumble or complain (esp in the phrase moan and groan )
Synonym Usage
See groan.
Other Word Forms
Derived Forms
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moanernoun
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moaningnoun
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moanfuladjective
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unmoanedadjective
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unmoaningadjective
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moanfullyadverb
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moaninglyadverb
Inflected Forms
Nouns
Participles
Conjugated Forms
Present
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moansimple
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moanssimple
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have moanedperfect
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has moanedperfect
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am moaningprogressive
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are moaningprogressive
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is moaningprogressive
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have been moaningperfect progressive
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has been moaningperfect progressive
Past
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moanedsimple
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had moanedperfect
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was moaningprogressive
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were moaningprogressive
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had been moaningperfect progressive
Future
Etymology
Origin of moan
First recorded in 1175–1225; Middle English mone, man(e) (noun), Old English mān, unrecorded but inferred from its derivative mǣnan “to mourn”
Explanation
The low sound you make when you're in pain is called a moan. A bad stomachache can leave you bent over, making soft moans. Moan is also a verb, so whenever someone is hurting enough — physically or mentally — there's the possibility they'll moan in despair or discomfort. You can also use this word to mean "whine" or "complain," like when your little sister moans about how much smaller her slice of pie is than yours. Experts think moan is related to the Old English word mænan, "complain or moan," but that it's also imitative — resembling the sound it describes.
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:
“Otherwise, you sit there and moan and groan and don’t vote. They’re going to do what they want,” David Goodman said.
From Slate ● Jul. 27, 2026
To mention the most popular moan, the silver screen has been losing its monopoly on displaying moving pictures since the arrival of TV in the 1940s.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Dec. 9, 2025
Johnson wants to usher people who moan that today’s movies aren’t any good back into his sacred space, the cinema.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 25, 2025
She didn't get an invitation to the coronation of her ex-brother-in-law, but didn't moan about it.
From BBC ● Sep. 23, 2025
Still, he stifles a moan as his wounded hand tries to manage the reins.
From "Will’s Race for Home" by Jewell Parker Rhodes
“Why am I getting involved with a cinephile?” moans Beau-Beau, speaking for many an indie producer to follow.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 30, 2025
"I think what you would say about Craig, and a lot of people wouldn't see it, is his professionalism," adds Given, who once joked Bellamy "probably moans in his sleep".
From BBC ● Oct. 6, 2025
But it’s the contestants’ moans, screams and cramped expressions as they try to suppress their laughter that are really compelling.
From New York Times ● Jan. 18, 2024
It arrived as the music of dire necessity, the work song, the psalm, and was subsequently used to distract and entertain captors, or to scare them off with screams and moans they couldn’t decipher.
From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 1, 2023
She moans again and clamps her hands over her mouth, her eyes welling up.
From "The Knife of Never Letting Go" by Patrick Ness
Many in the audience laughed and applauded, when they should have gasped or moaned.
From Slate ● Sep. 10, 2026
She sang open-throated declarations, recited broken poetic verses, scatted with the authority of a jazz singer, moaned with bluesy intent, and occasionally let loose an unbridled shriek or giggle.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Apr. 4, 2026
I know so many people who don't have the luxury of an insurance policy so I would feel like a sham if I moaned about my situation.
From BBC ● Jan. 2, 2026
Fails tried to get her daughter comfortable as she cried and moaned.
From Salon ● Nov. 1, 2024
“I shouldn’t have put it off,” moaned Nhamo.
From "A Girl Named Disaster" by Nancy Farmer
Here, Fay Victor, a uniquely daring and creative singer, adorns her vocal with all manner of creaking, wailing, moaning and scatting, yet she maintains Bey’s feeling of directing a congregation.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Jun. 22, 2026
The director’s moaning score here, supplemented with sputtering engines and clanking chains, underline the movie’s ghost-story vibe — the sense that poor Nick is both alive and dead.
From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 19, 2026
“Get me rewrite!” he seems to be moaning.
From Slate ● Jun. 11, 2026
And team boss Toto Wolff, who rarely talks on the radio, ordered his protege to "concentrate on the driving, not on the radio moaning".
From BBC ● May 23, 2026
When Uncle D came home from Vietnam, he became like a ghost rattling his chain and moaning in the night.
From "Gone Crazy in Alabama" by Rita Williams-Garcia
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.
