sing
verb (used without object)
to utter words or sounds in succession with musical modulations of the voice; vocalize melodically.
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sing
1 American
[sing]
/ sɪŋ /
verb (used without object)
sang,
sung,
sung,
singing
-
to utter words or sounds in succession with musical modulations of the voice; vocalize melodically.
-
to perform a song or voice composition.
She promised to sing for us.
-
to produce melodious sounds, usually high in pitch, as certain birds, insects, etc..
The nightingale sang in the tree.
-
to compose poetry.
Keats sang briefly but gloriously.
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to tell about or praise someone or something in verse or song.
He sang of the warrior's prowess.
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to admit of being sung, as verses.
This lyric sings well.
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to give out a continuous ringing, whistling, murmuring, burbling, or other euphonious sound, as a teakettle or a brook.
-
to make a short whistling, ringing, or whizzing sound.
The bullet sang past his ear.
-
(of an electrical amplifying system) to produce an undesired self-sustained oscillation.
-
to have the sensation of a ringing or humming sound, as the ears.
-
Slang. to confess or act as an informer; squeal.
verb (used with object)
sang,
sung,
sung,
singing
-
to utter with musical modulations of the voice, as a song.
-
to escort or accompany with singing.
-
to proclaim enthusiastically.
-
to bring, send, put, etc., with or by singing.
She sang the baby to sleep.
-
to chant or intone.
to sing mass.
-
to tell or praise in verse or song.
noun
-
the act or performance of singing.
-
a gathering or meeting of persons for the purpose of singing.
a community sing.
-
a singing, ringing, or whistling sound, as of a bullet.
verb phrase
sing.
2
American
abbreviation
sing
1
British
/ sɪŋ /
verb
-
to produce or articulate (sounds, words, a song, etc) with definite and usually specific musical intonation
-
to perform (a song) to the accompaniment (of)
to sing to a guitar
-
to tell a story or tale in song (about)
I sing of a maiden
-
to address a song (to) or perform a song (for)
-
(intr) to perform songs for a living, as a professional singer
-
(intr) (esp of certain birds and insects) to utter calls or sounds reminiscent of music
-
to tell (something) or give praise (to someone), esp in verse
the poet who sings of the Trojan dead
-
(intr) to make a whining, ringing, or whistling sound
the kettle is singing
the arrow sang past his ear
-
(intr) (of the ears) to experience a continuous ringing or humming sound
-
(tr) (esp in church services) to chant or intone (a prayer, psalm, etc)
-
(tr) to bring to a given state by singing
to sing a child to sleep
-
slang (intr) to confess or act as an informer
-
(intr) (in Aboriginal witchcraft) to bring about a person's death by incantation. The same power can sometimes be used beneficently
noun
-
informal an act or performance of singing
-
a ringing or whizzing sound, as of bullets
sing.
2
British
abbreviation
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of sing
First recorded before 900; Middle English singen, Old English singan; cognate with Dutch zingen, German singen, Old Norse syngva, Gothic siggwan
Explanation
When you sing, you make music with your voice: "Do, Re, Mi, Fa, So, La, Ti..." You get it. Many of us sing along to the radio, sing lullabys to babies, or sing happy birthday to our friends. Sometimes voices are so loud and musical that you can use sing even when they're not literally singing: "She waves and sings out a cheerful, 'Hello!'" In poetry, to sing is to honor or praise, as Walt Whitman does in "Song of Myself:" "I celebrate myself and sing myself."
Vocabulary lists containing sing
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:
In her 40s, my mother decided she was going to sing.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 27, 2026
I’m not a great singer because I can sing better than everyone — I’m a great singer because I sing from my heart.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 23, 2026
Early musical shorts like “Morning Walk” and “Danielleanika” lean into his stoic, awkward persona as he pretends to rap or sing a passionate love song.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 22, 2026
"The children would sit at the back, adults in the middle, and everyone would sing worship songs all morning."
From BBC ● Oct. 19, 2026
If we get out of this alive, Jonathan thought, I will never again sing about itsy-bitsy spider.
From "Earthquake Terror" by Peg Kehret
"I have to write and sing. See, that was my first love, and I have to do that forever, however I have to do it."
From BBC ● Aug. 26, 2026
“Opera is a work of theater, usually presented onstage. And most of the performers sing. Most of the time.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 27, 2026
He remembers her “singing the notes to me that she wanted me to sing. And I looked at her and I was like, ‘yes, OK.’
From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 22, 2024
“From the day Michael was born he could sing. That was his ordained life, and once he found out what his niche was, that was what he did,” said Ruby Washington, Mr. Watford’s stepsister.
From New York Times ● Feb. 4, 2024
“Too nervous. I can never eat before I sing. You aren’t nervous?”
From "Goodbye Stranger" by Rebecca Stead
He sang at a prayer vigil for young people in Bologna in 1997 hosted by John Paul II.
From Barron's ● Nov. 4, 2026
And when he heard “Hero,” he asked a friend working for the band who sang it originally.
From Salon ● Nov. 3, 2026
By the 1920s and ‘30s, L.A. wells were supplying more than a quarter of the world’s oil appetite. The Uplifters booster club sang its official drinking song: “Yes, it’s oil oil oil/that makes L.A. boil!”
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 30, 2026
Outside the university auditorium, where Machado fielded questions, hundreds of cheering students sang the national anthem and shouted “freedom.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 29, 2026
“Good morning, Lumawoo,” Cassiopeia sang out happily from near the cave’s entrance.
From "The Unseen Guest" by Maryrose Wood
In 1995, Pulido launched his own independent singing career during the golden age of Tejano music, defined by acts such as Patsy Torres, Little Joe y La Familia and Selena Quintanilla.
From Los Angeles Times ● Nov. 4, 2026
Then drums started to beat and the singing of traditional songs began.
From Barron's ● Nov. 2, 2026
One reflects on a visit by young Nazis to Japan in 1940: “They call out, singing / to bring the deer closer / the Hitler Youth.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 1, 2026
"It was said that when he strode on to the parade ground, birds stopped singing."
From BBC ● Oct. 29, 2026
They’re like birds: they wake up before it’s light, and they’re singing and fluttering around just as soon as their eyes are open.
From "Ida B" by Katherine Hannigan
Thousands of invitations rolled in for a singer whose hit song “Desvelado” can still be sung by generations of Tejanos in the Rio Grande Valley.
From Slate ● Nov. 2, 2026
The term “countertenor” dates back to the Elizabethans, for whom it meant the medieval contratenor line that was sung against the generally larger and lower tenor voice.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 9, 2026
The nearly 5-year-old eagle has perched and sung with Shadow, who first paired up with Jackie in 2018.
From Los Angeles Times ● Oct. 4, 2026
"It's such a privilege, it's extraordinary," she said of hearing "hallelujah" sung across the famed avenue.
From Barron's ● Sep. 26, 2026
Ever since Miss Love started playing for preachin’, folks had sung out good, patting their feet and generally getting in shape to shout and amen during the sermon.
From "Cold Sassy Tree" by Olive Ann Burns
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