repine

American

[ri-pahyn] / rɪˈpaɪn /

verb (used without object)

repined, repining

to be fretfully discontented; fret; complain.

repine British

/ rɪˈpaɪn /

verb

(intr) to be fretful or low-spirited through discontent

"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

Other Word Forms

repiner noun
unrepined adjective
unrepining adjective

Etymology

Origin of repine

First recorded in 1520–30; re- + pine ²

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.

We are republishing Patterson’s repine in honor of the holiday.

From Slate • Jul. 4, 2012

Must Man, the chiefest Work of Art Divine, Be doom'd in endless Discord to repine?

From Time Magazine Archive

But if no one agrees, the author need not repine.

From Time Magazine Archive

I will not pause either to accuse or repine.

From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë

Sometimes, however, I repine a little and wish that I were, say, a porpoise, splashing gayly along at the surface, and making a noise in the world.

From Atlantic Classics, Second Series by Addams, Jane

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023