wailing

wail  (wl)

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.

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

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wailer n.

wailing·ly adv.

Thesaurus

Noun	1.	wailing - loud cries made while weeping bawling crying, tears, weeping - the process of shedding tears (usually accompanied by sobs or other inarticulate sounds); "I hate to hear the crying of a child"; "she was in tears"
Adj.	1.	wailing - vocally expressing grief or sorrow or resembling such expression; "lamenting sinners"; "wailing mourners"; "the wailing wind"; "wailful bagpipes"; "tangle her desires with wailful sonnets"- Shakespeare lamenting, wailful sorrowful - experiencing or marked by or expressing sorrow especially that associated with irreparable loss; "sorrowful widows"; "a sorrowful tale of death and despair"; "sorrowful news"; "even in laughter the heart is sorrowful"- Proverbs 14:13