wail

[weyl]

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verb (used without object)

to utter a prolonged, inarticulate, mournful cry, usually high-pitched or clear-sounding, as in grief or suffering: to wail with pain.

to make mournful sounds, as music or the wind.

to lament or mourn bitterly.

Jazz. to perform exceptionally well.

Slang. to express emotion musically or verbally in an exciting, satisfying way.

verb (used with object)

to express deep sorrow for; mourn; lament; bewail: to wail the dead; to wail one's fate.

to express in wailing; cry or say in lamentation: to wail one's grief.

noun

the act of wailing.

a wailing cry, as of grief, pain, or despair.

any similar mournful sound: the wail of an old tune.

Origin of wail

1300–50; Middle English weile (v. and noun), perhaps derivative of Old English weilā(wei) well-away; compare Old English wǣlan to torment, Old Norse wǣla to wail

Related formswail·er, nounwail·ing·ly, adverbun·wailed, adjectiveun·wail·ing, adjective

Can be confusedwail whale

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Related Words for wail

moan, sob, fuss, whimper, grieve, mourn, weep, howl, bemoan, bewail, jowl, lament, repine, whine, bawl, bay, squall, keen, deplore, complain

Examples from the Web for wail

Contemporary Examples of wail

As the women “wail” and the men “dance,” the community takes time to “demonstrate care and respect for the dead.”
Kissing the Corpses in Ebola Country
Abby Haglage
August 13, 2014
A helicopter chugged above and there was the wail of a siren.
London's Living Sculptures
Anthony Haden-Guest
August 6, 2009

Historical Examples of wail

Linda looked at her as she buried her face and began to wail.
Her Father's Daughter
Gene Stratton-Porter
She was too terrified to add her weeping to the wail of the wind—it would have been too ghastly.
Dust
Mr. and Mrs. Haldeman-Julius
It's the wail of a lost spirit, loosed temporarily from the horrors of purgatory.
Good Indian
B. M. Bower
The voice changed into what was almost a wail of indignation.
The Coryston Family
Mrs. Humphry Ward
No shriek, no wail, no word succeeded—all was as silent as the grave.
Graham's Magazine Vol. XXXII No. 2. February 1848
Various

British Dictionary definitions for wail

wail

verb

(intr) to utter a prolonged high-pitched cry, as of grief or misery

(intr) to make a sound resembling such a crythe wind wailed in the trees

(tr) to lament, esp with mournful sounds

noun

a prolonged high-pitched mournful cry or sound

Derived Formswailer, nounwailful, adjectivewailfully, adverb

Word Origin for wail

C14: of Scandinavian origin; related to Old Norse vǣla to wail, Old English wā woe

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

Word Origin and History for wail

early 14c., from Old Norse væla "to lament," from væ "woe" (see woe). Of jazz musicians, "to play very well," attested from 1955, American English slang (wailing "excellent" is attested from 1954). Related: Wailed.

c.1400; see wail (v.).