Lamentation Meaning
/ˌlæm.ənˈteɪ.ʃən/Definition, CEFR level C1, pronunciation, examples, and quiz.
Listen pronunciation
Definition
nounThe act of lamenting.
nounA sorrowful cry; a lament.
Sentence Examples
The lamentation of the mourners filled the air.
Her lamentation was a heartfelt expression of grief.
The tragic news caused great lamentation in the town.
CEFR Practice Quiz
The loud ____ could be heard from the house where the family was mourning.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The sound of ____ filled the air as the villagers gathered to mourn the death of their respected leader.
Word Origin & History
Recorded since 1375, from Middle English lamentacioun, from Middle French lamentation and its etymon Latin lāmentātiō (“wailing, moaning, weeping”), from the deponent verb lāmentor, from lāmentum (“wail; wailing”), itself from a Proto-Indo-European *leh₂- (“to howl”), presumed ultimately imitative. Replaced Old English cwiþan. By surface analysis, lament + -ation.
Literary Quotations & Historical Citations
"About John Marin, there move sad, disgruntled beings, full of talk and lamentations. [...] They bewail the fact that in America, soil is poor and unconducive to growth, and men remain unmoved by growing green. But Marin persists, and what ebullience and good humour, in the rocky ungentle loam?"
— 1922 April, Paul Rosenfeld, “The Water-Colours of John Marin: A Note on the Work of the First American Painter of the Day”, in John Peale Bishop, editor, Vanity Fair, volume 18, number 2, New York, N.Y.: Vanity Fair Publishing Company, →OCLC, page 48, column 2:
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CEFR Practice Quiz
The loud ____ could be heard from the house where the family was mourning.
CEFR Practice Quiz (Alternate)
The sound of ____ filled the air as the villagers gathered to mourn the death of their respected leader.