as in wailing
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1
as in complaining
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
victims of the disaster have been keening for weeks about the slowness of governmental aid
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of keening
Sheri Linden, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2025
But Dunne’s voice, lilting and keening, is rich with empathy.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 5 Sep. 2025
All the keening Elektras heartbreakingly silly.
—Anne Carson, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2025
Adjective
This sequence, with its onstage vengeance, despair and keening dialogue, and its offstage look at how Kikuo’s triumph affects the two people closest to him, is one of the most powerful in the movie.
—Sheri Linden, HollywoodReporter, 29 Oct. 2025
But Dunne’s voice, lilting and keening, is rich with empathy.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 5 Sep. 2025
All the keening Elektras heartbreakingly silly.
—Anne Carson, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for keening
Adjective
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Sitting opposite an old people’s home in a residential corner of Paris’ 14th arrondissement, La Santé’s unassuming presence is only given away by the occasional wailing siren as prisoners are transported to and from the site.—
Joseph Ataman,
CNN Money,
14 Oct. 2025
Verb
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But Frederica Wilson, a Democratic congresswoman from South Florida, vividly remembers her constituents complaining about one Facebook ad in particular.—
David Smiley,
Miami Herald,
7 Nov. 2025
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About 20% of fire department employees responded to the survey, with large majorities of those respondents complaining about discrimination, diversity and inclusion programs and a wide range of organizational issues.—
Aaron Valdez,
Cincinnati Enquirer,
6 Nov. 2025
Verb
-
Stalter and Downs had the crowd howling with their commitment to the bit.—
Marc Malkin,
Variety,
5 Jan. 2026
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January’s full moon is called the Wolf Moon because wolves were more likely to be heard howling at this time.—
Newsroom Meteorologist,
Austin American Statesman,
3 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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But his crying scene in Ford v Ferrari is one for the ages.—
Michael Granberry,
Dallas News,
17 Jan. 2020
Verb
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According to the Union Parish Sheriff’s Office, deputies were dispatched in November to a residence in the Linville community of Marion after a caller reported a neighbor standing in their driveway screaming and refusing to leave the property despite having been warned previously.—
Jasmine Baehr,
FOXNews.com,
9 Jan. 2026
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Avid viewers of The Studio will appreciate the callback to a watershed episode this season when Ice Cube, as himself, uttered the same to a room filled with screaming fans, causing a fresh headache for Seth Rogen’s backlot boss Matt Remick.—
Steven Zeitchik,
HollywoodReporter,
9 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.—
David Mamet,
National Review,
11 Aug. 2022
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The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Verb
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Illinois Republicans have turned whining into an artform.—
Paul Miller,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Jan. 2026
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First came Notre Dame whining over missing out on a College Football Playoff invite.—
Greg Cote
December 14,
Miami Herald,
14 Dec. 2025
Verb
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While lying on the pavement, he could be heard moaning as an officer shouted at him not to move.—
Jose R. Gonzalez,
AZCentral.com,
13 Dec. 2025
-
There’s something moaning in the background.—
Brian Hiatt,
Rolling Stone,
10 Oct. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Keening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/keening. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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