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wail - 7 dictionary results

wail

  [weyl]
Use wail in a Sentence
–verb (used without object)
1. to utter a prolonged, inarticulate, mournful cry, usually high-pitched or clear-sounding, as in grief or suffering: to wail with pain.
2. to make mournful sounds, as music or the wind.
3. to lament or mourn bitterly.
4. Jazz. to perform exceptionally well.
5. Slang. to express emotion musically or verbally in an exciting, satisfying way.
–verb (used with object)
6. to express deep sorrow for; mourn; lament; bewail: to wail the dead; to wail one's fate.
7. to express in wailing; cry or say in lamentation: to wail one's grief.
–noun
8. the act of wailing.
9. a wailing cry, as of grief, pain, or despair.
10. any similar mournful sound: the wail of an old tune.
Origin:
1300–50; ME weile (v. and n.), perh. deriv. of OE weilā(wei) well-away; cf. OE wǣlan to torment, ON wǣla to wail

Related forms:
wailer, noun
wail⋅ing⋅ly, adverb
Dictionary.com Unabridged
Based on the Random House Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2009.
Cite This Source Link To wail
wail   (wāl)   
v.   wailed, wail·ing, wails

v.   intr.
  1. To grieve or protest loudly and bitterly; lament. 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.
n.  
  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.
The American Heritage® Dictionary of the English Language, Fourth Edition
Copyright © 2009 by Houghton Mifflin Company.
Published by Houghton Mifflin Company. All rights reserved.
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Wail

Wail\, v. t. [Cf. Icel. val choice, velja to choose, akin to Goth. waljan, G. w["a]hlen.] To choose; to select. [Obs.] "Wailed wine and meats." --Henryson.

Wail

Wail\, v. t. [imp. & p. p. Wailed; p. pr. & vb. n. Wailing.] [OE. wailen, weilen, probably fr. Icel. v[ae]la; cf. Icel. v[ae], vei, woe, and E. wayment, also OE. wai, wei, woe. Cf. Woe.] To lament; to bewail; to grieve over; as, to wail one's death. --Shak.

Wail

Wail\, v. i. To express sorrow audibly; to make mournful outcry; to weep.

Therefore I will wail and howl. --Micah i. 8.

Wail

Wail\, n. Loud weeping; violent lamentation; wailing. "The wail of the forest." --Longfellow.
Webster's Revised Unabridged Dictionary, © 1996, 1998 MICRA, Inc.
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Language Translation for : wail
Spanish: llorar, gimotear; ulular; plañir,
German: jammern,
Japanese: 泣き叫ぶ
More Translations »

wail  (v.)
c.1330, from O.N. væla "to lament," from væ "woe" (see woe). Of jazz musicians, "to play very well," attested from 1955, Amer.Eng. slang (wailing "excellent" is attested from 1954). The noun is recorded from c.1400.
Online Etymology Dictionary, © 2001 Douglas Harper
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