plaintive

[ pleyn-tiv ]
See synonyms for: plaintiveplaintiveness on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. expressing sorrow or melancholy; mournful: a plaintive melody.

Origin of plaintive

1
First recorded in 1350–1400; plaint + -ive; replacing Middle English plaintif, from Middle French

Other words for plaintive

Opposites for plaintive

Other words from plaintive

  • plain·tive·ly, adverb
  • plain·tive·ness, noun

Words that may be confused with plaintive

Words Nearby plaintive

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How to use plaintive in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for plaintive

plaintive

/ (ˈpleɪntɪv) /


adjective
  1. expressing melancholy; mournful

Origin of plaintive

1
C14: from Old French plaintif grieving, from plainte plaint

Derived forms of plaintive

  • plaintively, adverb
  • plaintiveness, noun

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