definitions

wail

[ weyl ]
/ weɪl /
|
SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR wail ON THESAURUS.COM

verb (used without object)

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

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RELATED WORDS

pallbearer, griever, weeper, keener

Nearby words

waichow, waif, waikaremoana, waikato, waikiki, wail, wail like a banshee, wailful, wailfully, wailsome, wailuku

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

Examples from the Web for wailer

  • Then follows the story: Luisa, the Wailer, in life was a woman of the people, very beautiful.

    Legends of the City of Mexico|Thomas A. Janvier

  • After weeping over her dead body he sets out in search of a Wailer.

    Russian Fairy Tales|W. R. S. Ralston

British Dictionary definitions for wailer

wail

/ (weɪl) /

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