Link Centre Dictionary

moan

UK/məʊn/ US/moʊn/ fairly common uk
verb (1) noun (1)

verb

1.

indicate pain, discomfort, or displeasure

  • “The students groaned when the professor got out the exam booklets”
  • “The ancient door soughed when opened”
Synonyms

noun

1.

an utterance expressing pain or disapproval

Synonyms

Origin

From Middle English mone, mane, mān, (also as mene), from Old English *mān, *mǣn (“complaint; lamentation”), from Proto-West Germanic *mainu, from Proto-Germanic *mainō (“opinion; mind”). Cognate with Old Frisian mēne (“opinion”), Old High German meina (“opinion”). Old English *mān, *mǣn is inferred from Old English mǣnan (“to complain over; grieve; mourn”). More at mean.

Phrases

  • bitch and moan
  • make moan
  • moaning dove
  • moaning Minnie
  • piss and moan

Related words

Word family

Broader terms

WordNet 2.1 (Princeton University). Wiktionary (CC BY-SA). CMU Pronouncing Dictionary. WordNet 2.1 Copyright Princeton University. All rights reserved. Wiktionary content is available under the Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike Licence.