wail
[ weyl ]
/ weɪl /
Save This Word!
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
QUIZZES
THINK YOU’VE GOT A HANDLE ON THIS US STATE NICKNAME QUIZ?
Did you ever collect all those state quarters? Put them to good use on this quiz about curious state monikers and the facts around them.
Question 1 of 8
Mississippi’s nickname comes from the magnificent trees that grow there. What is it?
Origin of wail
1300–50; Middle English weile (verb and noun), perhaps derivative of Old English weilāwei wellaway; compare Old English wǣlan “to torment,” Old Norse wǣla “to wail”
OTHER WORDS FROM wail
wailer, nounwail·ing·ly, adverbun·wailed, adjectiveun·wail·ing, adjectiveWORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wail
wail , whaleDictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2021
Example sentences from the Web for wail
British Dictionary definitions for wail
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 forms of wail
wailer, nounwailful, adjectivewailfully, adverbWord 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