FluentPlex

wail

/weɪl/ verb C1
  1. To cry out, as in sorrow or anguish. (intransitive)
  2. To weep, lament persistently or bitterly. (intransitive)
  3. To make a noise like mourning or crying. (intransitive) · The wind wailed and the rain streamed down.
  4. To lament; to bewail; to grieve over. (transitive) · to wail one's death
  5. To perform with great liveliness and force. (slang)

He/she/it wails · Past wailed · Past participle wailed · -ing form wailing

+ Save to review

Verb forms

Base form
wail
He/she/it
wails
Past
wailed
Past participle
wailed
-ing form
wailing

From the library

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.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, p. 3 · B2
In spite of the swaying of the house and the wailing of the wind, Dorothy soon closed her eyes and fell fast asleep.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, p. 5 · B2
“Didn’t you know water would be the end of me?” asked the Witch, in a wailing, despairing voice.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, p. 89 · B2
“Or I my brains?” wailed the Scarecrow, wiping the tears from his eyes with his coat sleeve.
The Wonderful Wizard of Oz, p. 106 · B2

Other matches

Learn wail in real texts

With a free account, hover any word in the library for its meaning, hear it read aloud, save words for review timed to your memory, and see how much of each book you already know.

Create free account
Words, meanings, pronunciations and translations from Wiktionary (CC BY-SA 4.0); how common each word is from wordfreq. Made into this dictionary by FluentPlex.