plaintive
English
Etymology
From Middle English pleintif, plentyff, from French plaintif (“aggrieved, lamenting”), from plainte (“lament, complaint”); see plaint. Doublet of plaintiff.
Pronunciation
- IPA(key): /ˈpleɪntɪv/
Adjective
plaintive (comparative more plaintive, superlative most plaintive)
- Sounding sorrowful, mournful or melancholic.
- a typically plaintive song from Radiohead
Translations
Sorrowful, mournful or melancholic
Further reading
- plaintive in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
- plaintive in The Century Dictionary, New York, N.Y.: The Century Co., 1911.
French
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