moan

[ mohn ]

/ moʊn /

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See synonyms for: moan / moaned / moaning on Thesaurus.com

noun

a prolonged, low, inarticulate sound uttered from or as if from physical or mental suffering.

any similar sound: the moan of the wind.

complaint or lamentation.

verb (used without object)

to utter moans, as of pain or grief.

(of the wind, sea, trees, etc.) to make any sound suggestive of such moans: The wind moaned through the trees.

verb (used with object)

to utter (something) inarticulately or pitifully, as if in lamentation: He moaned his response.

to lament or bemoan: to moan one's fate.

OTHER WORDS FOR moan

4 grieve.

4, 7 mourn.

7 deplore.

See synonyms for moan on Thesaurus.com

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Origin of moan

1175–1225; Middle English mone, man(e) (noun), Old English mān, unattested but inferred from its derivative mǣnan “to mourn”

synonym study for moan

1. See groan.

OTHER WORDS FROM moan

moanful, adjectivemoan·ful·ly, adverbmoan·ing·ly, adverbun·moaned, adjective

un·moan·ing, adjective

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use moan in a sentence

“Basically the[re] is no money out there,” moaned one submitter.
Barclays Settlement: The Worst of the Emails|Alex Klein|July 5, 2012|DAILY BEAST
Students moaned and grunted as they contorted their bodies into a succession of poses.
Hilaria Thomas, Yoga Instructor (and the Next Mrs. Alec Baldwin)|Lizzie Crocker|May 22, 2012|DAILY BEAST
The left moaned that The Citizens United Supreme Court ruling would flood campaigns with corporate cash.
Big Business Didn't Bite|Benjamin Sarlin|June 14, 2010|DAILY BEAST
Punch scratched himself in his sleep, and Judy moaned a little.
Kipling Stories and Poems Every Child Should Know, Book II|Rudyard Kipling

"Well, seems to me just now a hotel would look the nicest of anything," moaned Cordelia, wearily.
The Sunbridge Girls at Six Star Ranch|Eleanor H. (Eleanor Hodgman) Porter
Her tears instead flowed faster, and her sobs grew heavier, until finally she moaned like a stricken animal in pain.
The Underworld|James C. Welsh
I lay me down and moaned, in my agony of spirit and of body, and at last sleep came to my relief.
Confessions of a Thug|Philip Meadows Taylor
The medium moaned and wrung her hands hysterically, her breath coming in quick gasps.
The Woman Gives|Owen Johnson

British Dictionary definitions for moan

moan

/ (məʊn) /

noun

a low prolonged mournful sound expressive of suffering or pleading

any similar mournful sound, esp that made by the wind

a grumble or complaint

verb

to utter (words) in a low mournful manner

(intr) to make a sound like a moan

(usually intr) to grumble or complain (esp in the phrase moan and groan)

Derived forms of moan

moaner, nounmoanful, adjectivemoaning, noun, adjectivemoaningly, adverb

Word Origin for moan

C13: related to Old English mǣnan to grieve over

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

moan

OTHER WORDS FOR moan

Origin of moan

synonym study for moan

OTHER WORDS FROM moan

Words related to moan

How to use moan in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for moan

Derived forms of moan

Word Origin for moan