1
: lamentation, complaint
… made a great moan if he had to work …—
D. H. Lawrence
D. H. Lawrence2
: a low prolonged sound of pain or of grief
a moan of distress
moaned; moaning; moans
2
a
: to make a moan : groan
b
: to emit a sound resembling a moan
the wind moaned in the trees
Examples of moan in a Sentence
Noun
She let out a long, deep moan.
the moan of the wind
the moan of the car's engine
Verb
The wounded soldier moaned in pain.
He moaned with pleasure as she rubbed his back.
We were all moaning about the cold, rainy weather.
He's always moaning about his salary.
The children were moaning and groaning all morning, but their mother would not let them go outside.
I'm tired of all his moaning and groaning about his salary.
“But I don't want to go,” moaned the boy.
The wind moaned in the trees.
Recent Examples on the Web
Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2025
The audience thought his moans were all part of the act.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 17 Apr. 2025
Baz Dreisinger, Forbes.com, 5 Apr. 2025
Ramirez said the detectives had found belongings near the storm drain entrance and heard what sounded like a woman moaning from inside the storm drain.
—Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for moan
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Noun
And there, like an old friend, is Cronenberg’s regular composer Howard Shore with a synth moan to keep the mood unnerving.
—Robert Abele, Los Angeles Times, 18 Apr. 2025
The audience thought his moans were all part of the act.
—Seth Abramovitch, HollywoodReporter, 17 Apr. 2025
Verb
In fact, regulars’ favorite thing to moan about, year after year, is the ever-mounting cost of Carnival fete tickets and costumes.
—Baz Dreisinger, Forbes.com, 5 Apr. 2025
Ramirez said the detectives had found belongings near the storm drain entrance and heard what sounded like a woman moaning from inside the storm drain.
—Teri Figueroa, San Diego Union-Tribune, 7 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for moan
Cite this Entry
“Moan.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/moan. Accessed 5 May. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
moan
1 of 2 noun1
: a long low sound indicating pain or grief
2
: a sound like a moan
moan
2 of 2 verbLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
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