wail

See also: Wäil

English

Pronunciation

• enPR: wāl, IPA^(key): /weɪl/, [weɪɫ]

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪl
• Homophone: wale
• Homophone: whale (wine–whine merger)

Etymology 1

c. 1300, Middle English weilen, waylen (“to sob, cry, wail”), from Old Norse væla (“to wail”), from væ, vei (“woe”), from Proto-Germanic *wai (whence also Old English wā (“woe”) (English woe)), from Proto-Indo-European *wáy.

The verb is first attested in the intransitive sense; the transitive sense developed in mid-14^th c.. The noun came from the verb.

Verb

wail (third-person singular simple present wails, present participle wailing, simple past and past participle wailed)

1. (intransitive) To cry out, as in sorrow or anguish.

   Synonyms: groan, moan

2. (intransitive) To weep, lament persistently or bitterly.

   Synonyms: burst into tears; see also Thesaurus:weep

3. (intransitive) To make a noise like mourning or crying.

   Synonyms: keen, ululate

   The wind wailed and the rain streamed down.

4. (transitive) To lament; to bewail; to grieve over.

   Synonyms: lament, mourn; see also Thesaurus:lament

   to wail one's death

   • 1595 December 9 (first known performance), William Shakespeare, “The life and death of King Richard the Second”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: […] Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, →OCLC, [Act 3, scene 2]:

     My lord, wise men ne'er sit and wail their woes

5. (slang, music) To perform with great liveliness and force.
   • 1999, Lewis A. Erenberg, Swingin' the Dream: Big Band Jazz and the Rebirth of American Culture‎^[2], page 111:

     At Boston's Roseland, as "the Count's band was wailing," he grabbed Mamie, an avid dancer. The "band was screaming when she kicked off her shoes and got barefooted

   • 2012, Robert Lewis Barrett, A Portrait of the First Born As a Child‎^[3], page 377:

     The band was really wailing as we quickly made our dance moves in a most provocative manner.

   • 2013, Joan Silber, Fools‎^[4], →ISBN:

     We had a nondenominational wedding, with a bunch of great Sufi musicians really wailing, and my wildly enthusiastic mother in attendance.

Derived terms

• bewail
• wailer
• wail on
• wailingly

Translations

to cry out

• Bikol Central: haya
• Bulgarian: стена (bg) (stena)
• Catalan: plànyer-se (ca), gemegar (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 嚎啕 (zh) (háotáo), 號啕／号啕 (zh) (háotáo), 號哭／号哭 (zh) (háokū)

• Danish: hyle, jamre
• Finnish: ulista (fi), itkeä (fi)
• French: gémir (fr)
• Galician: salaiar, laiar, lanxir
• German: jammern (de), heulen (de)
• Gothic: 𐌷𐌹𐌿𐍆𐌰𐌽 (hiufan)
• Greek:

  Ancient: γοάω (goáō)

• Hungarian: jajgat (hu), jajveszékel (hu)
• Italian: piangere (it), lamentarsi (it)
• Kazakh: зарлау (zarlau)
• Latin: vagio
• Mpade: swe
• Marathi: गळा काढणे (gaḷā kāḍhṇe)
• Norwegian: jamre (no)
• Persian: زاری کردن (zâri kardan), ضجه زدن (zajje zadan)
• Polish: zawodzić (pl) impf, kwilić impf
• Russian: вопи́ть (ru) (vopítʹ)
• Spanish: llorar (es), lamentar (es)
• ǃXóõ: gǃkxʻáã

to weep, lament

• Bikol Central: haya
• Bulgarian: ридая (bg) (ridaja), оплаквам (bg) (oplakvam)
• Catalan: plorar (ca), lamentar-se (ca)
• Chinese:

  Cantonese: 哀泣 (oi¹ jap¹) (literary)

  Mandarin: 哀泣 (zh) (āiqì) (literary)

• Danish: jamre, klage (da)
• Egyptian: (jwjw)
• Finnish: ulista (fi), itkeä (fi)
• French: se lamenter (fr), vagir (fr)
• Galician: laiar, salaiar, lanxir
• German: heulen (de), wehklagen (de) (obsolete)
• Gothic: 𐌵𐌰𐌹𐌽𐍉𐌽 (qainōn)
• Greek:

  Ancient: ὀδύρομαι (odúromai)

• Hungarian: sír (hu), siránkozik (hu)
• Ingrian: ulissa
• Italian: lamentarsi (it), gemere (it), piagnucolare (it)
• Mpade: swe
• Old English: rēotan
• Persian: گریه و زاری کردن (gerye-o-zâri kardan)
• Russian: выть (ru) (vytʹ), вопи́ть (ru) (vopítʹ), стена́ть (ru) (stenátʹ), причита́ть (ru) (pričitátʹ)
• Spanish: llorar (es)
• Turkish: mızmızlanmak (tr) (lament / informal)
• ǃXóõ: gǃkxʻáã

to make a sound like crying

• Bulgarian: ридая (bg) (ridaja), вия (bg) (vija)
• Finnish: ulvoa (fi), ulista (fi), valittaa (fi)
• Galician: laiar, salaiar
• German: heulen (de)
• Hungarian: süvít (hu)
• Italian: gemere (it) m, lamentarsi (it), ululare (it)
• Maori: whakapū
• Russian: выть (ru) (vytʹ)
• Spanish: gemir (es)

to grieve over

• Bulgarian: оплаквам (bg) (oplakvam)
• German: klagen (de), wehklagen (de), beweinen (de)
• Hungarian: gyászol (hu), sirat (hu), kesereg (hu), fájlal (hu)

to perform with great liveliness and force (slang)

• German: jaulen (de) (pejorative)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Dutch: ^{(please verify)} huilen (nl)
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} strillo (it)

Noun

wail (plural wails)

1. A prolonged cry, usually high-pitched, especially as of grief or anguish. [from 15^th c.]

   She let out a loud, doleful wail.

2. Any similar sound as of lamentation; a howl.

   The wail of snow-dark winter winds.

   A bird's wail in the night.

3. A sound made by emergency vehicle sirens, contrasted with "yelp" which is higher-pitched and faster.

Derived terms

• widow-wail

 

Translations

loud cry or shriek

• Bulgarian: вопъл (bg) m (vopǎl), стон (bg) (ston)
• Catalan: gemec (ca) m
• Danish: hyl n, jammer c, klageråb n
• Dutch: schreeuw (nl) m, kreet (nl) m
• Esperanto: vekrio
• Finnish: ulina (fi)
• French: gémissement (fr) m, plainte (fr) f
• Galician: laio m
• German: Schrei (de) m, Schmerzensschrei (de) m, Klagelaut (de) m, Wehklagen (de) n (exalted), Kreischen (de) n
• Icelandic: æpa (is)
• Italian: urlo (it) m, gemito (it) m, lamento (it) m
• Japanese: 泣き声 (ja) (nakigoe), うなり (ja) (unari)
• Latvian: vaimana (lv) f
• Persian: ویله (fa) (veyle)
• Polish: bek (pl) m
• Portuguese: gemido (pt)
• Russian: вой (ru) m (voj), вопль (ru) m (voplʹ), вытьё (ru) n (vytʹjó), стена́ния (ru) n pl (stenánija)
• Spanish: gemido (es) m

a long drawn out howl

• German: Heulen (de) n, Jaulen n, Schrei (de) m (bird), Geschrei (de) n (birds), Kreischen (de) n (birds)
• Maori: whakapū

emergency vehicle siren

• Bulgarian: вой (bg) m (voj)
• German: Heulen (de) n
• Italian: suono di sirena m

Etymology 2

From Old Norse val (“choice”). Compare Icelandic velja (“to choose”). More at wale.

Verb

wail (third-person singular simple present wails, present participle wailing, simple past and past participle wailed)

1. (obsolete) Synonym of wale (“to choose; to select”)
   • c. 1500, Robert Henryson, The Testament of Cresseid:

     Wailed wine and metes

References

• “wail”, in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, Springfield, Mass.: G. & C. Merriam, 1913, →OCLC.
• “wail”, in The Century Dictionary […], New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911, →OCLC.
• “wail”, in OneLook Dictionary Search.

Anagrams

• wali, wila, wāli

Asilulu

Noun

wail

1. water

References

• James T. Collins, The Historical Relationships of the Languages of Central Maluku, Indonesia (1983), page 70

Cebuano

Etymology

Blend of wala (“not”) +‎ ilhi (“known, recognized”)

Pronunciation

• Hyphenation: wa‧il
• IPA^(key): /waˈʔil/ [wɐˈʔil̪]
• Rhymes: -il

Noun

wail (Badlit spelling ᜏᜁᜎ᜔)

1. an insignificant person
2. an unknown person or thing
3. an unknown celebrity or politician