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| com·plain [ kəm pláyn ] (past and past participle com·plained, present participle com·plain·ing, 3rd person present singular com·plains) |
intransitive verb |
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| Definition: |
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1. express unhappiness: to express discontent or unhappiness about a situation
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2. describe symptoms: to describe symptoms that are being experienced, e.g. of an illness
 complaining of chest pains
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3. protest: to formally make an accusation of wrongdoing or a crime, or register a protest
The neighbors complained to the police about the noise.
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| [14th century. < French complaign-, stem of complaindre< Latin plangere "to beat"] |
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| com·plain·er noun |
| com·plain·ing·ly adverb |
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| Word Key: Synonyms |
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complain, object, protest, grumble, grouse, carp, gripe, whine, nag
CORE MEANING: to indicate dissatisfaction with something
complain to express discontent or unhappiness about a situation;
Nearby neighbors had complained about the noise and the mess.
He complains bitterly that tests were not done years ago.
object to be opposed to something, or express opposition to it;
We object strongly to the two proposals.
Sports bodies have objected on the grounds that the plan would take away space that could be used as a playing field.
protest to express strong disapproval or disagreement;
a day of action to protest the government's health policies
From eight months onwards, babies are likely to protest loudly at being passed around.
grumble to complain or mutter in a discontented way, possibly repeatedly or continually;
He picked up his brush and, grumbling, got down to work.
Investors were grumbling about not being told the whole story.
grouse to complain regularly and continually, often in a way that is not constructive;
grousing about the commercialism of art
"These talks are leading nowhere," one of the negotiators groused.
carp to keep complaining or finding fault, especially about unimportant things;
He was a mean employer, carping all the time.
We've had a lot of injuries which we haven't carped on too much.
gripe (informal) to complain continually and irritatingly;
griping about the fact that I had not presented him with an advance copy of the book
You griped when I was in the house all day, and now that I've got a job you are griping at that!
whine to complain in an unreasonable, repeated, or irritating way;
so-called experts whining about the state of the nation's schools
whining to me about his problems.
nag to find fault with somebody regularly and repeatedly;
I was always being nagged about the length of my hair or the untidiness of my room. |
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