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wailing
[ wey-ling ]
adjective
- uttering a prolonged, inarticulate, mournful cry, usually high-pitched or clear-sounding, as in grief or suffering:
In the village we passed a funeral procession, the wailing widow following behind the body of her husband.
- making a mournful sound, as a siren, music, the wind, etc.:
A wailing police siren nears, passes, and fades.
- complaining, protesting, whining, or crying:
He rubbed the bare foot of the wailing toddler and planted a kiss on it.
They’re always trying to correct the market, usually in the interests of some wailing pressure group.
- Slang. expressing emotion musically or verbally in an exciting, satisfying way:
The song celebrates with a Cajun-flavored stomp accompanied by a wailing fiddle and screaming electric guitar.
noun
- a mournful cry or sound, or the act of making such a sound:
The wailing of the mourners rose and fell, merging with the drums and the shaman’s chants.
- an act or instance of complaining, protesting, etc.:
“All art is propaganda, despite the wailing of purists,” she sneered.
- Slang. the act of expressing emotion musically or verbally in an exciting, satisfying way:
At this live show from 1974, the soulful wailing of the chorus in the background is utterly spine-tingling.
Other Words From
- wail·ing·ly adverb
- un·wail·ing adjective
Word History and Origins
Origin of wailing1
Example Sentences
“Andrea described how she had never seen her father cry until they had gotten the news of Sabrina’s death, and he dropped to his knees and was wailing about his baby.”
There was no immediate word on casualties, but ambulances rushed to the scene, sirens wailing.
During many of these calls, I could hear ambulance sirens wailing in the background.
Somalia’s defence minister hit back, saying Ethiopia should stop “wailing” as everyone “will reap what they sowed” - a reference to their worsening diplomatic relations.
He’d always been change-averse; when I rearranged the furniture in our Ohio family room when Aaron was about 6, he was disconsolate, wailing for days like King Lear in the storm: “Why is everything different?”
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