PLAINTS Synonyms: 65 Similar and Opposite Words

plaints

noun

plural of plaint

as in lamentations

a crying out in grief the day after the massacre the plaints of bereaved mothers and wives could be heard throughout the village

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as in whines

an expression of dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment that taxes are too high is perhaps the most perennial of plaints

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Recent Examples of Synonyms for plaints

Noun

These rock lamentations will not be carried over to the full-length album the band still has in the works, which Bono promises will have a more joyful tone.

— Chris Willman, Variety, 18 Feb. 2026
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

Definition of lamentations

Noun

An aldermanic office should know which streets generate recurring complaints, whether resurfacing is needed and how those streets are being prioritized for capital improvements.

— Vince Fattore, Chicago Tribune, 24 Sep. 2026
Ambulances won’t come to the neighborhood anymore, and the city doesn’t respond to complaints about the polluted water for days, maybe weeks.

— Ben Travers, IndieWire, 24 Sep. 2026

Definition of complaints

Noun

Memory tends to lose sound quickly, but even years later, Jake’s mother’s wails play with the same staccatos and double chords.

— Caroline Cherston, STAT, 25 Aug. 2026
Mourners beat their chests rhythmically in the intense summer heat, the wails of women cutting through the noise as the body of Ayatollah Ali Khamenei was unveiled beneath a glass case at the Grand Mosalla.

— Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 4 July 2026

Definition of wails

Noun

Seated in a wheelchair, he was quickly wheeled out of the courtroom after the sentencing, while some of his accusers hugged and brushed away tears.

— Michael R. Sisak, Los Angeles Times, 23 Sep. 2026
The night also featured some tears, surprise cameos, the reveal of a rehearsal injury for one pro dancer and a new change implented at the judges' panel.

— Liza Esquibias, USA Today, 22 Sep. 2026

Definition of tears

Noun

Wails and moans of grief interspersed the chanting, until the small coffin was lowered into the grave.

— Victoria Davies, Rolling Stone, 31 Aug. 2026
On the second call, the medical alert company employee connected a local 911 call-taker to audio from the home, where the woman's moans of pain and threats by a man could be heard.

— David Clarey, jsonline.com, 26 Aug. 2026

Definition of moans

Noun

Lacking life detection equipment, the workers strained to hear their cries.

— Arkansas Online, Arkansas Online, 19 Sep. 2026
Each year on the night of September 15, Mexico’s president reenacts the famous grito from the National Palace in Mexico City, ringing the exact same bell Hidalgo did and leading the crowd in cries honoring the heroes of independence.

— Encyclopedia Britannica, Encyclopedia Britannica, 11 Sep. 2026

Definition of cries

Noun

The other main track of Diamanda’s career is her interpretations of old standards, Gospel songs, laments, and folk tunes.

— Matt Thompson, SPIN, 21 Aug. 2026
Her laments are now laced with fury, as genocidal wars and murderous technologies join global warming in the twenty-first century’s third decade.

— Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 6 Aug. 2026

Definition of laments

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

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“Plaints.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/plaints. Accessed 27 Sep. 2026.

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Synonyms of plaints

noun

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