1
as in complaining
to express dissatisfaction, pain, or resentment usually tiresomely
victims of the disaster have been keening for weeks about the slowness of governmental aid
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
as in wailing
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Recent Examples of keening
Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 5 Sep. 2025
All the keening Elektras heartbreakingly silly.
—Anne Carson, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2025
Verb
But Dunne’s voice, lilting and keening, is rich with empathy.
—Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 5 Sep. 2025
All the keening Elektras heartbreakingly silly.
—Anne Carson, New Yorker, 21 Aug. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for keening
Verb
-
In my experience as an outfitter, Altra has always been my go-to suggestion whenever a customer walks in complaining about foot problems.—
Alice Bennett,
Travel + Leisure,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Miami is awful, and everyone should’ve known it the minute their players were complaining that their joint practice with the Bears was too tough.—
Jon Greenberg,
New York Times,
11 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
Once Upon a Brick — Wolf Guy gets himself into a hairy situation in this howling comedy.—
Brady MacDonald,
Oc Register,
19 Sep. 2025
-
Farms with multiple species also provide habitat for colorful and charismatic wildlife such as the endangered Yellow-eared Parrot and mantled howling monkey.—
Marianne Krasny,
Forbes.com,
16 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
His children can be heard screaming and crying in the video.—
Armando Garcia,
ABC News,
18 Sep. 2025
-
Dudes who can’t get in get into screaming matches with Jah at the door, and the party extends out into the street where neighbors start peeking out their windows and standing on their porches shaking their heads.—
Alphonse Pierre,
Pitchfork,
18 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
But his crying scene in Ford v Ferrari is one for the ages.—
Michael Granberry,
Dallas News,
17 Jan. 2020
Verb
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In one of the videos, she's seen rinsing her eye in a hospital sink, while moaning from the discomfort.—
Nick Romano,
Entertainment Weekly,
15 Sep. 2025
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Julia says, dropping to all fours and moaning amid a pile of straw on the floor.—
Kimberly Roots,
TVLine,
5 Sep. 2025
Adjective
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And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.—
David Mamet,
National Review,
11 Aug. 2022
-
The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Verb
-
The canine was filmed barking and whining incessantly while balancing himself on his owner's knees.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 Sep. 2025
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The cats kept them up each night with their incessant whining and scratching at their doors.—
Duaa Eldeib,
ProPublica,
10 Sep. 2025
Verb
-
My husband has been muttering in a loop about tuition, books, food, and transportation to and from home to campus.—
Melissa Willets,
Parents,
15 Sep. 2025
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He was also heard muttering expletives down the stretch, visibly battling the heat and pressure.—
Devlina Sarkar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
23 Aug. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Keening.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/keening. Accessed 21 Sep. 2025.
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