wail

Meaning

Verb

1. (intransitive) To cry out, as in sorrow or anguish.
2. (intransitive) To weep, lament persistently or bitterly.
3. (intransitive) To make a noise like mourning or crying.
4. (transitive) To lament; to bewail; to grieve over.
5. (slang) To perform with great liveliness and force.

Noun

1. A prolonged cry, usually high-pitched, especially as of grief or anguish.
2. Any similar sound as of lamentation; a howl.
3. A sound made by emergency vehicle sirens, contrasted with "yelp" which is higher-pitched and faster.

Synonyms

cry

😢

lament

howl

moan

weep

groan

ululate

yowl

mourn

lamentation

whine

sob

😭

bewail

bemoan

roar

scream

😱

bawl

plaint

wailing

whimper

cry out

yawl

yell

weeping

yaup

cry loudly

hoot

complain

grief

shriek

deplore

mourning

screech

pule

mewl

squeal

sorrow

weep aloud

bay

bellow

bitch

blare

blubber

bray

call out

caterwaul

clamor

complaint

condole

cries

Translations

gémir

klagen

gemir

jammern

vagir

heulen

pleurer

😢

se lamenter

weeklagen

gemido

wehklagen

lamento

ululare

lamentarsi

lamentarse

Pronounced as (IPA)

/weɪl/

Etymology

Inherited from Middle English: weilen

Cognate with Old English: wā

In summary

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.