complained; complaining; complains
1
: to express grief, pain, or discontent
complaining about the weather
2
: to make a formal accusation or charge
He threatened to complain of him to the captain.
complainer
noun
Examples of complain in a Sentence
He works hard but he never complains.
If you're unhappy with the service, you should complain to the manager.
The students complained that the test was too hard.
“These shoes are too tight,” he complained.
Recent Examples on the Web
And who could complain about that episode 4 ending?
—
Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Dec. 2025
Even the cast members complain about the size of the cast while predicting an inevitable demise or two lurking in the next set of episodes.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 26 Dec. 2025
But—this unstructured time is also an opportunity for your kids to bicker, complain about not having anything to do, and generally prompt parents to count down the hours until January 2!
—Melissa Willets, Parents, 25 Dec. 2025
Santos complained about life in lock up, regularly writing for the South Shore Press, a Long Island newspaper.
—Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 25 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for complain
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Nick Romano, Entertainment Weekly, 26 Dec. 2025
Even the cast members complain about the size of the cast while predicting an inevitable demise or two lurking in the next set of episodes.
—Ben Travers, IndieWire, 26 Dec. 2025
But—this unstructured time is also an opportunity for your kids to bicker, complain about not having anything to do, and generally prompt parents to count down the hours until January 2!
—Melissa Willets, Parents, 25 Dec. 2025
Santos complained about life in lock up, regularly writing for the South Shore Press, a Long Island newspaper.
—Barnini Chakraborty, The Washington Examiner, 25 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for complain
Cite this Entry
“Complain.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/complain. Accessed 27 Dec. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
complain
verb
com·plain
kəm-ˈplān 
1
: to express grief, pain, or discontent : find fault
complaining about the weather
2
: to accuse someone of wrongdoing
complainer
noun
Medical Definition
complain
intransitive verb
com·plain
kəm-ˈplān
: to speak of one's illness or symptoms
the patient visited the office complaining of weight loss
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