1
as in groan
a long low sound indicating pain or grief
she uttered an agonized moan and clutched her stomach
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in wail
a crying out in grief
moans arose from the crowd as the funeral procession for the well-loved senator made its way down the street
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3
as in whine
an expression of dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment
the crowd responded with a moan when it was announced that the rest of the show would be cancelled due to the weather
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1
as in to groan
to utter a moan
he moaned and cried for days after his dog, his only companion, died
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2
as in to complain
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
their son moaned whenever anyone asked him to do some work
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Example Sentences
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
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Recent Examples of moan
Ruby Rosenthal, Chicago Tribune, 14 Jan. 2026
Despite hearing her moan, Spees called in a level three resistance report but then continued escorting her toward his patrol vehicle.
—Dante Motley, Austin American Statesman, 18 Dec. 2025
Matt Slater, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
The Freight House building creaks and moans underfoot, and passing trains produce little more than a subtle hum.
—Nicole Letts, Southern Living, 28 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for moan
Noun
Two microphones angle towards the duduk to capture resonant moans, creaks, squeaks and honks akin to the bridge’s.
—Ruby Rosenthal, Chicago Tribune, 14 Jan. 2026
Despite hearing her moan, Spees called in a level three resistance report but then continued escorting her toward his patrol vehicle.
—Dante Motley, Austin American Statesman, 18 Dec. 2025
Verb
One minute later, Pedro Neto was yellow-carded for moaning.
—Matt Slater, New York Times, 5 Mar. 2026
The Freight House building creaks and moans underfoot, and passing trains produce little more than a subtle hum.
—Nicole Letts, Southern Living, 28 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for moan
Recent Examples of Synonyms for moan
Noun
-
All these moments are good for audience groans and there’s an enjoyable bad movie here for the seizing — that is when Cronin isn’t steering the action back to Egypt for an underpowered mystery thread involving a one-dimensional Cairo detective (May Calamawy) pursuing the root of the trouble.—
Joshua Rothkopf,
Los Angeles Times,
17 Apr. 2026
-
The proper response to this is a cynical groan.—
U T Editorial Board,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The resulting wail is certainly not kitten-like, sounding more like a cross between a sport bike and a completely uncorked race car.—
Byron Hurd,
The Drive,
29 Apr. 2026
-
Mitchell has made the point before that every new technology brings wails that the fish won’t survive.—
Mike McFeely,
Twin Cities,
24 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
Both motors stay at or below 45 dBA even at full power, something that will genuinely surprise anyone used to the whine of current-generation motors.—
Omar Kardoudi
April 10,
New Atlas,
10 Apr. 2026
-
The whine from that straight-cut gearbox alone is painfully loud, say nothing of the wide-open exhaust on the 4.0 L flat-six.—
Tim Stevens,
ArsTechnica,
16 Mar. 2026
Verb
-
Elsewhere, Super Mario Galaxy is hardly complaining about coming in second ruling the roost for weeks, since it’s now focused on becoming the first film of the year to join the billion-dollar club after finishing Sunday with a global total of $871 million.—
Pamela McClintock,
HollywoodReporter,
26 Apr. 2026
-
Commenters who never have been — and never will go — complain about the cost, the influencers, the hype.—
Andrea Domanick,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
The audio included crying, screaming and banging, prompting jurors to sob and appear visibly shaken.—
Christina Coulter,
PEOPLE,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Ending up living on the boat, Telsi notices her companions leave at dawn and return soaked and crying.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
8 Apr. 2026
Noun
-
In an interview earlier in March with the Yale Alumni Association, Chun admitted to making a mistake that made her cry in her first year as Yale AD.—
Jackson Thompson,
FOXNews.com,
22 Apr. 2026
-
Gabriela is not used to seeing her mother get emotional, but this made her cry.—
Hannah Keyser,
CNN Money,
17 Apr. 2026
Noun
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The fraud scheme netted $20 million from fraudulent loans that Davis and Evins used to buy real estate, jewelry and cars, according to the complaint.—
Ryan Gaydos OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
28 Apr. 2026
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After Navarro filed a complaint alleging the work had been wrongly kept from her, a Madrid judge, acting with the support of prosecutors, ordered Spain’s Ministry of Culture to take custody of it citing its potential importance to the country’s historical heritage.—
Daniel Cassady,
ARTnews.com,
28 Apr. 2026
Verb
-
One resident wakes up to a hooded stranger preparing to stab her and silently points them to her sleeping husband rather than scream.—
Alison Herman,
Variety,
29 Apr. 2026
-
On the bright side for Smith, he's still getting paid millions to scream into a camera and show up courtside to stir drama.—
Alejandro Avila OutKick,
FOXNews.com,
29 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Moan.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/moan. Accessed 1 May. 2026.
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