moan

See also: möän and Moan

English

Etymology

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.

Pronunciation

• (Received Pronunciation) enPR: mōn, IPA^(key): /məʊn/
• (US) enPR: mōn, IPA^(key): /moʊn/

• Audio (US):

  (file)

• Rhymes: -əʊn
• Homophone: mown

Noun

moan (plural moans)

1. a low, mournful cry of pain, sorrow or pleasure

   let out a deep moan

   We heard the distant moan of a stag in pain.

Translations

a low cry of pain

• Azerbaijani: inilti, zarıltı
• Bulgarian: стон (bg) m (ston), стенание n (stenanie)
• Catalan: gemec (ca) m
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 呻吟 (zh) (shēnyín), 哀鸣 (zh) (aīmíng)

• Czech: nářek m
• Dutch: kreun (nl)
• Esperanto: ĝemo
• Finnish: voihkinta, voihkina, voihke
• French: gémissement (fr) m
• Galician: laio m, laído m
• German: Stöhnen (de) n, Ächzen (de) n
• Hindi: कराह (hi) m (karāh)
• Hungarian: nyögés (hu)
• Irish: ong m (literary)
• Italian: gemito (it) m
• Japanese: 呻き (ja) (うめき, umeki), 呻き声 (うめきごえ, umekigoe)
• Kabuverdianu: jemidu
• Kazakh: ыңыл (yñyl)
• Kurdish:

  Northern Kurdish: axîn (ku) f, oxîn (ku) f, ofîn (ku) f

• Latgalian: voikuošona, gaudys
• Latvian: vaids
• Ottoman Turkish: زار (zar)
• Persian: ناله (fa) (nâle)
• Polish: jęk (pl) m
• Portuguese: gemido (pt) m, lamento (pt) m
• Romanian: geamăt (ro), gemete n pl
• Russian: стон (ru) m (ston)
• Scottish Gaelic: caoidh f
• Spanish: gemido (es) m, quejido (es) m
• Swedish: stönande (sv) n, stön (sv) n
• Ukrainian: сто́гін m (stóhin)
• Urdu: کَراہ m (karāh)

Verb

moan (third-person singular simple present moans, present participle moaning, simple past and past participle moaned)

1. (transitive, now rare) To complain about; to bemoan, to bewail; to mourn. [from 13th c.]
   • 1596, Edmund Spenser, “Book VI, Canto VII”, in The Faerie Queene. […], London: […] [John Wolfe] for William Ponsonbie, →OCLC:

     Much did the Craven seeme to mone his case […].

   • 1708, Matthew Prior, the Turtle and the Sparrow

     Ye floods, ye woods, ye echoes, moan / My dear Columbo, dead and gone.

2. (intransitive, now chiefly poetic) To grieve. [from 14th c.]

   Synonyms: lament; see also Thesaurus:be sad

3. (intransitive) To make a moan or similar sound. [from 18th c.]

   She moaned with pleasure and squirmed with delight from receiving oral sex.

   • 1961 November 10, Joseph Heller, “The Soldier in White”, in Catch-22 […], New York, N.Y.: Simon and Schuster, →OCLC, page 169:

     They shared a common dread that he would begin moaning.

4. (transitive) To say in a moan, or with a moaning voice. [from 19th c.]

   ‘Please don't leave me,’ he moaned.

5. (intransitive, colloquial) To complain; to grumble. [from 20th c.]

   Synonyms: whine; see also Thesaurus:complain

6. (transitive, obsolete) To distress (someone); to sadden. [15th–17th c.]

   Synonyms: deject; see also Thesaurus:sadden

   • 1626 February 1 (licensing date), John Fletcher [et al.], “The Faire Maide of the Inne”, in Comedies and Tragedies […], London: […] Humphrey Robinson, […], and for Humphrey Moseley […], published 1647, →OCLC, Act V, scene i:

     which infinitely moans me

Conjugation

Conjugation of moan

infinitive	(to) moan
	present tense	past tense
1st-person singular	moan	moaned
2nd-person singular	moan, moanest†	moaned, moanedst†
3rd-person singular	moans, moaneth†	moaned
plural	moan
subjunctive	moan	moaned
imperative	moan	—
participles	moaning	moaned

^†Archaic or obsolete.

Derived terms

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

 

Related terms

• bemoan

Translations

to complain

• Bulgarian: оплаквам се (oplakvam se)
• Catalan: gemegar (ca), llamentar-se, plànyer-se (ca)
• Dutch: klagen (nl)
• Finnish: valittaa (fi)
• French: se plaindre (fr), geindre (fr)
• German: klagen (de), beklagen (de)

  Alemannic German: chlaage

• Irish: éagaoin
• Italian: lamentarsi (it)
• Maori: hāngurunguru, kōnanunanu, kūnanunanu
• Polish: narzekać (pl)
• Portuguese: queixar-se (pt), reclamar (pt)
• Spanish: quejar (es)

to grieve (poetic)

• Finnish: valittaa (fi)
• German: wehklagen (de), beklagen (de)

to make a moan or similar sound

• Arabic: تَأَوَّهَ (ar) (taʔawwaha)
• Asturian: ximir (ast)
• Azerbaijani: inildəmək (az), zarıldamaq, inləmək (az)
• Belarusian: е́нчыць (jénčycʹ)
• Bulgarian: стена (bg) (stena)
• Catalan: gemegar (ca)
• Cherokee: ᎤᎵᏰᏗᎭ (uliyediha)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 呻吟 (zh) (shēnyín)

• Czech: sténat
• Dutch: kreunen (nl)
• Esperanto: ĝemi (eo)
• Estonian: oigama
• Finnish: voihkia (fi), ähkiä (fi)
• French: gémir (fr), mugir (fr)
• German: stöhnen (de), ächzen (de)

  Alemannic German: bërsche

• Hungarian: nyög (hu)
• Indonesian: mendesah (id)
• Italian: gemere (it)
• Japanese: 呻く (ja) (うめく, umeku)
• Latgalian: voikuot
• Latvian: vaidēt
• Macedonian: стенка (stenka)
• Maori: wheo, wheowheo, aurere, ngū
• Norwegian:

  Bokmål: stønne

  Nynorsk: stønna, stønne

• Oromo: aaduu (om)
• Persian: نالیدن (fa) (nâlidan)
• Polish: jęczeć (pl)
• Portuguese: gemer (pt)
• Romanian: geme (ro)
• Russian: стона́ть (ru) impf (stonátʹ)
• Serbo-Croatian: stenjati (sh)
• Spanish: gemir (es)
• Swedish: stöna (sv)
• Turkish: ahlamak (tr), inlemek (tr)
• Ukrainian: стогна́ти (stohnáty)
• Venetan: zèmere
• Vietnamese: rên rỉ (vi)

to say with a moaning voice

• Finnish: mankua (fi)
• German: jammern (de), stöhnen (de), schluchzen (de) (to sob, to snivel)

to grumble (colloquial)

• Finnish: nurista (fi)
• German: maulen (de), murren (de), motzen (de)

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

• Kurdish:

  Northern Kurdish: nalîn (ku), axîn (ku), oxîn (ku), ofîn (ku)

• Norman: ^{(please verify)} geindre (Jersey)

See also

• murmur
• protest
• lament

Further reading

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

Anagrams

• Noam, Mona, mona, Mano, Oman, NOMA, Amon, noma, Onam, maon, MONA, mano

Breton

Alternative forms

• moen

Etymology

From Middle Breton moen, from Old Breton moin, from Proto-Brythonic *muɨn (“beautiful”). Compare Welsh mwyn (“mild, gentle”).

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /ˈmwãːn/

Adjective

moan

1. thin, slender

   Synonym: tanav

   Antonym: tev

Mutation

Mutation of moan

	unmutated	soft	aspirate	hard
simple form	moan	voan	never occurs	never occurs
comparative	moanoc'h	voanoc'h	never occurs	-	superlative	moanañ	voanañ	unchanged	unchanged! exclamative	moanat	voanat	unchanged	unchanged

Finnish

Noun

moan

1. genitive singular of moa

Anagrams

• Oman, oman

Yola

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /mɔːn/
• Homophone: mawen

Etymology 1

From Middle English mone, from Old English mān, from Proto-West Germanic *mainu.

Noun

moan

1. moan
   • 1927, “LAMENT OF A WIDOW”, in THE ANCIENT DIALECT OF THE BARONIES OF FORTH AND BARGY, COUNTY WEXFORD, page 130, line 1:

     Ochone! to fo shul Ich maak mee moan,

     Ochone, to whom shall I make my moan,

Etymology 2

Noun

moan

1. Alternative form of mawen
   • 1927, “ZONG OF TWI MAARKEET MOANS”, in THE ANCIENT DIALECT OF THE BARONIES OF FORTH AND BARGY, COUNTY WEXFORD, page 129, line 1:

     A moan vrim a Bearlough an anoor vrim a Baak,

     A woman from the Bearlough and another from the Beak,

   • 1927, “ZONG OF TWI MAARKEET MOANS”, in THE ANCIENT DIALECT OF THE BARONIES OF FORTH AND BARGY, COUNTY WEXFORD, page 129, line 7:

     Shu ztaared an shu ztudied hi near parshagh moan,

     She stared and she studied by the other passive woman,

   • 1927, “YOLA ZONG O BARONY VORTH”, in THE ANCIENT DIALECT OF THE BARONIES OF FORTH AND BARGY, COUNTY WEXFORD, page 132, line 1:

     Billeen Scalaane an hys yola moan,

     Billy Scallan and his old woman,

References

• Kathleen A. Browne (1927) The Journal of the Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland Sixth Series, Vol.17 No.2, Royal Society of Antiquaries of Ireland