wail

[ weyl ]

/ weɪl /

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See synonyms for: wail / wailed / wailing / wailer on Thesaurus.com

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.

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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, adjective

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wail

wail , whale

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2022

How to use wail in a sentence

The album’s continuous flow of shimmering synthesizer swirls and electronic wails that envelop and seemingly expand in all directions reveal Strom’s innate world-building skills.
Pauline Anna Strom’s posthumous album cements her legacy as an electronic music visionary|Jonathan Williger|February 19, 2021|Washington Post
Along with her wails, she’d repeat the same phrases, over and over — all part of a daily ritual that spanned some four hours, until a collection of voices told her they were satisfied.
‘Call of Duty’ voice actors spent the summer on video calls like the rest of us|Mike Hume|November 11, 2020|Washington Post
For all of the bellyaching, tooth gnashing, and public wailing, Democrats have no one to blame but themselves.
How the Lame Democrats Blew It|Goldie Taylor|November 5, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When the Iraqis resume shouting and wailing at you, Hassan translates every exclamation until you tell him to stop.
Whatever You Do Someone Will Die. A Short Story About Impossible Choices in Iraq|Nathan Bradley Bethea|August 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST

“I heard my baby wailing and asked one of the officers to let me hold him,” she writes.
What’s Next, Police With Tanks?|James Poulos|June 28, 2014|DAILY BEAST
In his 2000 visit to Israel, the Polish pope placed a note at the Wailing Wall seeking forgiveness for Christian anti-Semitism.
Pope Francis’s Sister Souljah Moment?|Evan Gahr|May 23, 2014|DAILY BEAST
When Japan scored a point there were moans and a long wailing cry of E-yay.
How to Hide a Famine with Ping-Pong|Nicholas Griffin|January 9, 2014|DAILY BEAST
At Felipe's cry, the women waiting in the hall hurried in, wailing aloud as their first glance showed them all was over.
Ramona|Helen Hunt Jackson
The sentinel was singing a sequedilla above; and its notes came to them with the wailing blast.
The Pastor's Fire-side Vol. 3 of 4|Jane Porter
He came close to having convulsions when a squad car passed on the next street west, its siren wailing.
Hooded Detective, Volume III No. 2, January, 1942|Various
And an answering cry sounded across the lagoon—thin, wailing, piteous.
Three More John Silence Stories|Algernon Blackwood
The hero hears sounds of wailing, and finds the maiden, the daughter of the King of the Isles, exposed upon the seashore.
The Three Days' Tournament|Jessie L. Weston

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, 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

wail

Origin of wail

OTHER WORDS FROM wail

WORDS THAT MAY BE CONFUSED WITH wail

Words related to wail

How to use wail in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for wail

Derived forms of wail

Word Origin for wail