wail
[weyl]
- 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.
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- 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.
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- the act of wailing.
- a wailing cry, as of grief, pain, or despair.
- any similar mournful sound: the wail of an old tune.
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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
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2018
Related Words
moan, sob, fuss, whimper, grieve, mourn, weep, howl, bemoan, bewail, jowl, lament, repine, whine, bawl, bay, squall, keen, deplore, complainExamples from the Web for wailed
Contemporary Examples
As McSpadden wailed in grief, Head climbed on the hood of the car to console her.
Little Kristina wailed as she was taken out of sight of her mother; she has not been seen since.
My chest pressed into the foot of the crib, arms outstretched through bars, I wailed at an open door to an empty staircase.
Huddled in groups outside the storefronts, people chatted and waited, cried and wailed the names of the missing.
‘It Sounded Like Someone Kicked My Door In’: The Disaster That Rocked East HarlemJacob Siegel
March 12, 2014
Historical Examples
Hippy said he pounded and shouted and howled and wailed and pounded some more.
Grace Harlowe's Return to Overton CampusJessie Graham Flower
"Oh, it makes me so lonesome when you sing that way," wailed the Little Colonel.
The Little ColonelAnnie Fellows Johnston
"But Papa Jack would die befo' he'd take help from you," she wailed.
The Little ColonelAnnie Fellows Johnston
The watchers wept and wailed at first, and then fell to eating and drinking.
Welsh Fairy TalesWilliam Elliott Griffis
"Tom don' want to go to the poor-farm," he wailed piteously.
The Village Watch-Tower(AKA Kate Douglas Riggs) Kate Douglas Wiggin
wail
- (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
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- a prolonged high-pitched mournful cry or sound
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Word Origin
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
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Word Origin and History for wailed
wail
n.
c.1400; see wail (v.).
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wail
v.
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.
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Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2010 Douglas Harper