as in to mourn
to feel or express sorrow for
her grandfather asked her not to wail for him, saying that he had had a good life and was at peace
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for wail (for)
Verb
-
By evening, hundreds were there for a vigil to mourn the death and urge the public to resist immigration enforcers.—
Tim Sullivan,
Twin Cities,
7 Jan. 2026 -
And as the university mourns Ward’s death, Self helped to put the win in perspective.—
Anna Lazarus Caplan,
PEOPLE,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
At the same time, however, political parties could play a role in restoring trust by calling out their own, increasing their own accountability by lamenting real offenses among their own members.—
Brandon Rottinghaus,
Washington Post,
7 Jan. 2026
-
Advocates, people working in the criminal justice system and community members have lamented its closure since.—
Ryan Oehrli
January 7,
Charlotte Observer,
7 Jan. 2026
Verb
-
Still, Brin doesn’t regret his own academic path.—
Preston Fore,
Fortune,
12 Jan. 2026
-
The stack is beautiful and inviting, but that initial giddiness always gives way to regret and disappointment.—
Jim Gaffigan
January 11,
CBS News,
11 Jan. 2026
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.
Cite this Entry
“Wail (for).” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/wail%20%28for%29. Accessed 17 Jan. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
