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
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of keening
Dan Piepenbring, New Yorker, 4 Feb. 2026
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
Adjective
The memoir shows little interest in the gambler’s psychology or the keening dramas of the floor.
—Dan Piepenbring, New Yorker, 4 Feb. 2026
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
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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This is why all the whining and complaining from small market teams across the sport is manipulative nonsense.—
Ian Miller OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
17 Apr. 2026
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There was crying, complaining, dissociating and even laughing on those couches.—
Wendy C. Ortiz,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Apr. 2026
Verb
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Elsewhere, Paula Rego’s two self portraits from 2017 show the artist howling through expressive pastel strokes.—
Leah Dolan,
CNN Money,
2 Apr. 2026
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When the evening kill was made, usually around 10 or 11 o’clock, howling would start again.—
Frank Glaser,
Outdoor Life,
1 Apr. 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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Brown voiced his frustrations with the Eagles’ passing offense during the regular season, then engaged in a screaming match with Sirianni during Philadelphia’s first-round playoff loss to the San Francisco 49ers.—
Peter Sblendorio,
New York Daily News,
14 Apr. 2026
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Dashcam footage recently released by Staffordshire Police shows the teenagers screaming and asking Dawson, 50, to slow the car down.—
Adam England,
PEOPLE,
14 Apr. 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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Zendaya's Rue thrives in her own weird little story, but Cassie (Sydney Sweeney) lacks a personality other than whining, Nate (Elordi) lacks a personality other than anger, and hyper-sexualized Maddie (Alexa Demie) lacks a personality other than blind ambition.—
Kelly Lawler,
USA Today,
9 Apr. 2026
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Get someone who spends more time trying to master the new model than whining about it.—
Stewart Mandel,
New York Times,
8 Apr. 2026
Verb
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But a male voice could be heard moaning in the background.—
Tim Stelloh,
NBC news,
3 Apr. 2026
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One minute later, Pedro Neto was yellow-carded for moaning.—
Matt Slater,
New York Times,
5 Mar. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Keening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/keening. Accessed 22 Apr. 2026.
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