as in wail
a crying out in grief
there was a great lamentation on Wall Street when the government's latest unemployment figures were published
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Recent Examples of lamentation
The space was replete with the repetitive knocking of drumsticks, the undulating rhythm of Qur’anic prayers, and the gut-wrenching murmur of lamentation coming from That is not still (Sesuatu yang tidak berdiam), a 2024 video work about Indonesia’s diverse soundscape.
—
Hung Duong, Artforum, 1 Jan. 2026
The language surrounding Bailey echoes sentiments from the 1990s and early 2000s, when public revelations of a celebrity’s homosexuality often triggered exaggerated lamentations from straight female fans.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Nov. 2025
The venues shuttered in March 2020, at the onset of COVID, prompting public lamentations from filmmakers ranging from Barry Jenkins and Lulu Wang to Edgar Wright and Olivia Wilde.
—Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 8 Aug. 2025
So this isn’t a lamentation that the Giants didn’t trade these players, per se.
—Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lamentation
Hung Duong, Artforum, 1 Jan. 2026
The language surrounding Bailey echoes sentiments from the 1990s and early 2000s, when public revelations of a celebrity’s homosexuality often triggered exaggerated lamentations from straight female fans.
—Melissa Fleur Afshar, MSNBC Newsweek, 28 Nov. 2025
The venues shuttered in March 2020, at the onset of COVID, prompting public lamentations from filmmakers ranging from Barry Jenkins and Lulu Wang to Edgar Wright and Olivia Wilde.
—Gary Baum, HollywoodReporter, 8 Aug. 2025
So this isn’t a lamentation that the Giants didn’t trade these players, per se.
—Grant Brisbee, New York Times, 1 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for lamentation
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lamentation
Noun
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But their loud wail, which can be activated via a mobile app, can be heard about half a mile away.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
5 Mar. 2026
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The album’s Bandcamp blurb shouts out Ghédalia Tarzatès, the late French composer who collaged his wails and lamentations in the endangered Ladino language to evoke pangs of existential angst.—
H.D. Angel,
Pitchfork,
6 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Tokenizing someone is always an ugly thing — yet Rubio deserves no tears.—
Gustavo Arellano,
Los Angeles Times,
9 Mar. 2026
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And so, there [were] some tears.—
Christina Dugan Ramirez,
FOXNews.com,
9 Mar. 2026
Noun
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In a voice note sent by the second Tehran resident on Wednesday night, the sound of pro-regime demonstrators who had gathered for the first day of official mourning for Khamenei can be heard chanting in the background.—
Kara Fox,
CNN Money,
6 Mar. 2026
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The tempo of the strikes on Iran was so intense that state television announced that public mourning for Iranian Supreme Leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, who was killed at the start of the conflict, would be postponed.—
Arkansas Online,
Arkansas Online,
5 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Ravel imagined his Pavane not as a lament for a dead princess, but as a gentle dance for a little girl in a 16th century painting.—
Scott Cantrell,
Dallas Morning News,
1 Mar. 2026
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Leading a group of seasoned musicians that includes guitarist Adam Brisbin and harp player Mary Lattimore, and working once again with Krivchenia as his producer, Meek continues to revel in the role of traditional troubadour of mid-tempo laments with heavy gestures to Buffalo Springfield.—
Dean Van Nguyen,
Pitchfork,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Apparently hearing her mother’s cries, 11-year-old Duong came into the bedroom, the prosecutor added.—
Sean Emery,
Oc Register,
5 Mar. 2026
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Grandma and grandpa may mean well, but some of their parenting styles are no longer recommended based on years of research—like ignoring your baby’s cries or forcing a school-age child clean their plate at dinner.—
Sherri Gordon,
Parents,
3 Mar. 2026
Noun
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Marcos’s commanders, confronted with throngs of nuns, priests and ordinary civilians pleading, weeping and kneeling in prayer, refused orders to open fire and clear the streets, and Marcos subsequently fled to exile in Hawaii.—
Keith B. Richburg,
Washington Post,
25 Feb. 2026
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Plants grow just one to two feet tall, with a weeping habit perfect for spilling out of containers and over rock walls, or planting as a dynamic groundcover.—
Kim Toscano,
Southern Living,
22 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Back at the gathering, there were Martha’s groans and Gretchen’s anger, and there was Mike, clasping his chest—a heart attack?—
Yiyun Li,
New Yorker,
1 Mar. 2026
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Mitski has never been afraid of thinking big, and there are moments here where the floorboards groan a little.—
Jon Dolan,
Rolling Stone,
27 Feb. 2026
Noun
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Aquilla Sadalla’s wordless vocals, a gorgeous swell of howls and heaves, complement the arrangement without becoming the focal point.—
Mark Richardson,
Pitchfork,
3 Feb. 2026
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At about two this morning, the familiar howl of air-raid sirens woke me in the center of Kyiv, followed by the low thuds of anti-aircraft cannons attempting to shoot down Russian drones.—
Simon Shuster,
The Atlantic,
3 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Lamentation.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lamentation. Accessed 13 Mar. 2026.
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