wail

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wail

moan or lament; to cry loudly: The toddler is sure to wail when his mother leaves.

Not to be confused with:

whale – hit, beat, strike hard: whale away at the bully; a very large cetacean

wail

(wāl)

v. wailed, wail·ing, wails

v.intr.

1. To make a long, loud, high-pitched cry, as in grief, sorrow, or fear. See Synonyms at cry.

2. To make a prolonged, high-pitched sound suggestive of a cry: The wind wailed through the trees.

v.tr. Archaic

To lament over; bewail.

1. A long, loud, high-pitched cry, as of grief or pain.

2. A long, loud, high-pitched sound: the wail of a siren.

3. A loud, bitter protest: A wail of misery went up when new parking restrictions were announced.

[Middle English wailen, probably of Scandinavian origin; akin to Old Norse vāla, vǣla.]

wail′er n.

wail′ing·ly adv.

American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fifth Edition. Copyright © 2016 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. All rights reserved.

wail

(weɪl)

1. (intr) to utter a prolonged high-pitched cry, as of grief or misery

2. (intr) to make a sound resembling such a cry: the wind wailed in the trees.

3. (tr) to lament, esp with mournful sounds

a prolonged high-pitched mournful cry or sound

[C14: of Scandinavian origin; related to Old Norse vǣla to wail, Old English wā woe]

ˈwailer n

ˈwailful adj

ˈwailfully adv

Collins English Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged, 12th Edition 2014 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1994, 1998, 2000, 2003, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2011, 2014

wail

(weɪl)

v.i.

1. to utter a prolonged, mournful cry, as in grief or suffering.

2. to make mournful sounds, as music or the wind.

3. to lament or mourn bitterly.

4. Slang. to express emotion musically or verbally in an exciting, satisfying way.

v.t.

5. to express deep sorrow for; mourn.

6. to express in wailing or in lamentation.

7. the act of wailing.

8. a wailing cry.

9. any similar mournful sound.

[1300–50; Middle English weile (v. and n.), perhaps derivative of Old English weilā(wei) wellaway; compare Old English wǣlan to torment, Old Norse wǣla to wail]

wail′er, n.

wail

Past participle: wailed
Gerund: wailing

Imperative
wail
wail

Present
I wail
you wail
he/she/it wails
we wail
you wail
they wail

Preterite
I wailed
you wailed
he/she/it wailed
we wailed
you wailed
they wailed

Present Continuous
I am wailing
you are wailing
he/she/it is wailing
we are wailing
you are wailing
they are wailing

Present Perfect
I have wailed
you have wailed
he/she/it has wailed
we have wailed
you have wailed
they have wailed

Past Continuous
I was wailing
you were wailing
he/she/it was wailing
we were wailing
you were wailing
they were wailing

Past Perfect
I had wailed
you had wailed
he/she/it had wailed
we had wailed
you had wailed
they had wailed

Future
I will wail
you will wail
he/she/it will wail
we will wail
you will wail
they will wail

Future Perfect
I will have wailed
you will have wailed
he/she/it will have wailed
we will have wailed
you will have wailed
they will have wailed

Future Continuous
I will be wailing
you will be wailing
he/she/it will be wailing
we will be wailing
you will be wailing
they will be wailing

Present Perfect Continuous
I have been wailing
you have been wailing
he/she/it has been wailing
we have been wailing
you have been wailing
they have been wailing

Future Perfect Continuous
I will have been wailing
you will have been wailing
he/she/it will have been wailing
we will have been wailing
you will have been wailing
they will have been wailing

Past Perfect Continuous
I had been wailing
you had been wailing
he/she/it had been wailing
we had been wailing
you had been wailing
they had been wailing

Conditional
I would wail
you would wail
he/she/it would wail
we would wail
you would wail
they would wail

Past Conditional
I would have wailed
you would have wailed
he/she/it would have wailed
we would have wailed
you would have wailed
they would have wailed

Collins English Verb Tables © HarperCollins Publishers 2011

ThesaurusAntonymsRelated WordsSynonymsLegend:

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Noun	1.	wail - a cry of sorrow and grief; "their pitiful laments could be heard throughout the ward" lament, lamentation, plaint complaint - (formerly) a loud cry (or repeated cries) of pain or rage or sorrow
Verb	1.	wail - emit long loud cries; "wail in self-pity"; "howl with sorrow" howl, ululate, yaup, yawl, roar cry, scream, shout out, yell, squall, shout, holler, hollo, call - utter a sudden loud cry; "she cried with pain when the doctor inserted the needle"; "I yelled to her from the window but she couldn't hear me" squall, waul, wawl - make high-pitched, whiney noises
	2.	wail - cry weakly or softly; "she wailed with pain" mewl, pule, whimper weep, cry - shed tears because of sadness, rage, or pain; "She cried bitterly when she heard the news of his death"; "The girl in the wheelchair wept with frustration when she could not get up the stairs"

wail

verb

1. cry, weep, grieve, lament, keen, greet (Scot. or archaic), howl, whine, deplore, bemoan, bawl, bewail, yowl, ululate The woman began to wail for her lost child.

2. scream, cry, yell, howl, shriek, screech, yelp She began to wail that she was hungry.

3. howl, scream, roar, cry The wind wailed outside the closed window.

noun

1. cry, moan, sob, howl, keening, lament, bawl, lamentation, yowl, ululation Wails of grief were heard as visitors filed past the site of the disaster.

Collins Thesaurus of the English Language – Complete and Unabridged 2nd Edition. 2002 © HarperCollins Publishers 1995, 2002

wail

verb

1. To make inarticulate sounds of grief or pain, usually accompanied by tears:

bawl, blubber, cry, howl, keen, sob, weep, yowl.

2. To cry loudly, as a healthy child does from pain or distress:

bawl, howl, yowl.

3. To utter or emit a long, mournful, plaintive sound:

bay, howl, moan, ululate, yowl.

noun

A long, mournful cry:

bay, howl, moan, ululation, yowl.

Translations

نَوْح، نُواح، إنْتِحابيَنوح، يَبْكي، يَنْتَحِب

hylehylenjamre

Jammern klagen

hurlement lamenter sur

jajgatjajgatás

vein, væl, gólveina, væla

gemito ululare

ūkčiojimas

apraudātgaudasgaudotraudasvaimanas

gråte over

tarnatizavijati

çığlık feryat feryat etmekhüngür hüngür ağlamak

哀号嚎啕嚎啕大哭

wail

[weɪl]

A. N

1. (= moan) → lamento m, gemido m; [of new-born] → vagido m; (= complaint) → queja f, protesta f
a great wail went up → pusieron el grito en el cielo

2. [of siren, wind] → gemido m

B. VI

1. (= moan) → lamentarse, gemir; [child] → llorar; (= complain) → quejarse, protestar

2. [siren, wind, bagpipes] → gemir

Collins Spanish Dictionary - Complete and Unabridged 8th Edition 2005 © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1971, 1988 © HarperCollins Publishers 1992, 1993, 1996, 1997, 2000, 2003, 2005

wail

[ˈweɪl]

[baby, person] → hurlement m

[siren] → hurlement m

[person, baby] (= cry) → hurler

[siren] → hurler
police cars with their sirens wailing → des voitures de police toutes sirènes dehors

vt [person] → hurler

wail

n (of baby) → Geschrei nt; (of mourner, music) → Klagen nt; (of sirens, wind) → Heulen nt; (inf: = complaint) → Gejammer nt (inf); a great wail/a wail of protest went up → es erhob sich lautes Wehklagen/Protestgeheul

vi (baby, cat) → schreien; (mourner, music) → klagen; (siren, wind) → heulen; (inf: = complain) → jammern (→ over über +acc)

Collins German Dictionary – Complete and Unabridged 7th Edition 2005. © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1980 © HarperCollins Publishers 1991, 1997, 1999, 2004, 2005, 2007

wail

[weɪl]

1. n (of suffering) → gemito; (of baby) → vagito; (of siren) → urlo; (of wind) → ululato
a wail of protest → un urlo di protesta

2. vi (see n) → gemere, vagire, urlare, ululare

wail

(weil) verb

to utter sorrowful or complaining cries. The child is wailing over its broken toy.

noun

a long cry. wails of grief; I heard the wail of a police siren.

wail

v. lamentarse; gemir.

Mentioned in ?

References in classic literature ?

Prince Andrew ran to the door; the scream ceased and he heard the wail of an infant.

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From the far north they heard a low wail of the wind, and Uncle Henry and Dorothy could see where the long grass bowed in waves before the coming storm.

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Back and peering into the binnacle, he listened vainly for another wail from Jerry in the hope of verifying his first hasty bearing.

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The long-drawn wail of two old boughs rubbing against each other brought out the perspiration in beads on her forehead.

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Instantly De Vac's iron band clapped over the tiny mouth, but not before a single faint wail had reached the ears of the men above.

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An eerie wail floated down from above and the apparition, whatever it might have been, was swallowed by the darkness.

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"Let us go on," said Benassis; "the wail for the dead has begun, that is the name they give to this part of the funeral rites."

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There was a wail along the road, as if a funeral were passing.

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Fearsome-looking as they were, I did not know whether to fear them or not, for they did not seem to be particularly well equipped for fighting, and I was on the point of stepping from my hiding-place and revealing myself to them to note the effect upon them of the sight of a man when my rash resolve was, fortunately for me, nipped in the bud by a strange shrieking wail, which seemed to come from the direction of the bluffs at my right.

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With throats unslaked, with black lips baked, We could not laugh nor wail; Through utter drought all dumb we stood!

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But when he had his will in everything, And no desire was left unsatisfied, It thundered from the netherworld; the maids Shivered, and crouching at their father's knees Wept, beat their breast and uttered a long wail. He, as he heard their sudden bitter cry, Folded his arms about them both and said, "My children, ye will lose your sire today, For all of me has perished, and no more Have ye to bear your long, long ministry; A heavy load, I know, and yet one word Wipes out all score of tribulations--love.

View in context

The Ayah had been taken ill in the night, and it was because she had just died that the servants had wailed in the huts.