I. ləˈment sometimes laˈ- verb
( -ed/-ing/-s )
Etymology: Middle French & Latin; Middle French lamenter, from Latin lamentari, from lamentum
intransitive verb
: to mourn vocally : sorrow aloud : wail , weep
the millions lamented; for ages they had sorrowed — Virginia Woolf
nightingales lament without ceasing — L.P.Smith
transitive verb
1. : to express sorrow for : bewail , mourn
must regret the imprudence, lament the result — Jane Austen
katydids were lamenting fall's approach — E.W.Smith
lamented that this particular piano should be so seldom played on — W.F.De Morgan
2. archaic : to express sorrow for (oneself)
Synonyms: see deplore
II. noun
( -s )
Etymology: Middle French or Latin; Middle French, from Latin lamentum; akin to Old Norse lō sandpiper, lōmr loon, Gothic lailōun they reviled, Latin latrare to bark, Greek lēros trash, nonsense, delirium, Armenian lam I weep, Sanskrit rāyati he barks
1. : a crying out in grief : complaint , sorrowing , wailing
let reason govern thy lament — Shakespeare
the lament of the professionals who disapproved — E.O.Hauser
2. : a lament crystallized in song or in literary form : dirge , elegy
bagpipes skirled, … playing a first a lament for him — Raymond Daniell
the dance band … was wailing a … lament — Raymond Chandler
learned a lot of blues songs and laments — James Jones