wail
Meaning
-
- To cry out, as in sorrow or anguish.
- To weep, lament persistently or bitterly.
- To make a noise like mourning or crying.
- To lament; to bewail; to grieve over.
- (slang) To perform with great liveliness and force.
Synonyms
cry loudly
weep aloud
cry aloud
cry over
cry bitterly
Frequency
Pronounced as (IPA)
/weɪl/
Etymology
c. 1300, Middle English weilen, waylen (“to sob, cry, wail”), from Old Norse væla (“to wail”), from væ, vei (“woe”), from Proto-Germanic *wai (whence also Old English wā (“woe”) (English woe)), from Proto-Indo-European *wáy. The verb is first attested in the intransitive sense; the transitive sense developed in mid-14ᵗʰ c.. The noun came from the verb.
Bookmark this
Improve your pronunciation
Write this word
Start learning English with learnfeliz.
Practice speaking and memorizing "wail" and many other words and sentences in English.
Go to our English course page
Notes