wail 1 of 2

noun

Definition of wailnext
1
as in cry
a crying out in grief a prolonged wail arose from every corner of the city as the victims of the earthquake were unearthed from the rubble

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2
as in groan
a long low sound indicating pain or grief rescuers heard a faint wail coming from the pile of rubble, a sure sign that one of the victims was still alive

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3
as in whine
an expression of dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment a transit fare increase that is sure to bring wails from the straphangers

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wail

2 of 2

verb

ˈwāl How to pronounce wail (audio)
1
as in to complain
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely the state's residents are always wailing about their high taxes

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2
as in to howl
to make a long loud mournful sound the women stood beside the coffins, wailing for their fallen sons and daughters

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3
as in to groan
to utter a moan the patient lay in her bed, occasionally softly wailing in pain

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Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of wail
Noun
No wet plop of a SpongeBob ice cream bar crashing onto hot asphalt; a child’s apocalyptic wails ensuing. — Allyson Reedy, Denver Post, 16 Sep. 2026 Geddy Lee, Rush No bassist’s singing voice has ever created a more pronounced contrast with his instrument than Rush’s Geddy Lee, who moved the piercing wail of influences like Led Zeppelin’s Robert Plant up another octave. — Al Shipley, SPIN, 8 Sep. 2026
Verb
Ambulances were seen leaving the hospital to bring the children's bodies home as mourners wept and wailed. — Arkansas Online, 16 Oct. 2026 Ambulances were seen leaving the hospital to bring the children’s bodies home as mourners wept and wailed. — Riaz Khan, Los Angeles Times, 15 Oct. 2026 See All Example Sentences for wail
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wail
  1. cry
  2. groan
  3. whine
  4. complain
  5. howl
  6. moan
  7. tears
  8. crying
Noun
  • And distinctly, the midterm turnout wasn’t a cry from voters to stop the buildout, but simply to put a new price tag on it, and OpenAI is the first major AI company to agree to pay it since the votes were counted.
    — Catherina Gioino, Fortune, 6 Nov. 2026
  • Fear factor Netanyahu and his allies made the large Arab turnout a rallying cry.
    — Ruth Sherlock, NPR, 6 Nov. 2026
Definition of cry
Noun
  • When Bose walks into the sound contest, all the other audio brands groan.
    — Kelsey Fogarty, PC Magazine, 3 Nov. 2026
  • But what happens when the season shifts, when the cloying good cheer of—groan—the holiday season comes with its candy stripes and jingle bells and partridges in pear trees?
    — Sadie Sartini Garner, Pitchfork, 30 Oct. 2026
Definition of groan
Noun
  • Our Chesapeake Bay Retriever dog saw them too and enthusiastically let out a small whine.
    — Kody Lostroh, Denver Post, 5 Oct. 2026
  • The mystic whine of Christine Ott and Mathieu Gabry’s score carries us into a hidden world of ancient Thai deities living inside the mountain’s caves and tunnels.
    — Beatrice Loayza, Variety, 9 Sep. 2026
Definition of whine
Verb
  • Someone else even complained about the self-clean feature ruining their appliance.
    — Stephanie Osmanski, Better Homes & Gardens, 3 Nov. 2026
  • By July, morale among immigration officers had dipped below its nadir during the Biden Administration, with agents now complaining of being overextended, inundated with novice recruits, and undermined by inflammatory rhetoric from on high.
    — Francisco Cantú, New Yorker, 2 Nov. 2026
Definition of complain
Verb
  • Egerton makes inspired choices, howling with sadistic glee during his pursuit.
    — Robert Daniels, New York Times, 30 Oct. 2026
  • But that’s what has been proposed here even as the sane heads in the City Council and beyond have been howling for, and shown the way toward, efficiencies.
    — The Editorial Board, Chicago Tribune, 22 Oct. 2026
Definition of howl
Verb
  • It's been a big few months for Austin Abrams moaning and groaning his way through some of the worst situations imaginable.
    — Megan McCluskey, Time, 16 Oct. 2026
  • For a cold moment the silence locked a grip on our table, though it was broken, at the edges, by the golf commentators moaning and harrumphing, Rory McIlroy having had a canary on a seventeenth fairway somewhere this championship Sunday.
    — Kevin Barry, New Yorker, 11 Oct. 2026
Definition of moan
Noun
  • At his Austin watch party, supporters celebrated the results with cheers, dancing and tears.
    — Amelia Mugavero, CBS News, 4 Nov. 2026
  • Supporters cried tears of joy and hugged one another, sharing political news of the city and also the country, as the energy in the crowd further amped up seemingly every half-hour.
    — Los Angeles Times, Los Angeles Times, 4 Nov. 2026
Definition of tears
Noun
  • After a month of Halloween horror, Williams wanted the kind of crying that comes with a good ol’ sports movie, and Keanu Reeves coaching a group of kids offers a true tale of common ground through weepy comfort.
    — Alison Foreman, IndieWire, 3 Nov. 2026
  • On the recording of the 911 call from that day, the operator’s steady voice is in sharp contrast to Nakira’s frantic crying.
    — Anja Aronowsky Cronberg, New Yorker, 24 Oct. 2026
Definition of crying

Phrases Containing wail

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Cite this Entry

“Wail.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wail. Accessed 10 Nov. 2026.

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