wail

With his rapid-fire mandolin playing and tenor wail, Buzz Busby delighted crowds in the honky-tonks of Washington, D.C.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 31, 2026

Chakraborty wants him to carry on his work, just as she carried on her research as a mother with a young son who would wail uncontrollably when she would drop him off at daycare.

From Los Angeles Times ● Jun. 12, 2026

Shortly afterwards, mobile phones beeped in unison as a missile alert came in and the wail of sirens started up.

From Barron's ● Mar. 10, 2026

Ada, 36, is strolling on the beach, unfazed by the wail of air alert sirens mingling with the squawking of seagulls.

From BBC ● Jan. 16, 2026

Cynthia would wail and flail overdramatic fists in the air, all leading up to the big finish, Cynthia planting her face flat on the desk.

From "Look Both Ways" by Jason Reynolds

The overkill hits its nadir when the Bride repeatedly wails the survivors’ hashtag, “Me too!”

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 4, 2026

Near Kelly: Set against the Teton Range, the movie “Shane” ends with Alan Ladd in the title role riding away on his horse while little Joey wails, “Shane! SHANE! Come back!”

From The Wall Street Journal ● Feb. 16, 2026

“My grandmother was a sharecropper in Arkansas, and I know that this is the same thing,” a man shouts at one point as whistles shrill and a handheld siren wails.

From Slate ● Feb. 11, 2026

So the next time you mimic those lung-busting wails at karaoke or hear “What’s Up?” used in a movie or on TV show, you can marvel at the song’s timeless solace.

From Salon ● May 26, 2025

A mom with a smoker’s voice raises her hand and wails, “Is the director in there?”

From "Better Nate Than Ever" by Tim Federle

Women dressed in black robes wailed over the bodies, one of which was draped in Hezbollah's yellow flag - a reflection of the group's support in this largely Shia area.

From BBC ● Mar. 28, 2026

They wailed and sang as they beat their chests with their hands, a common mourning ritual in Iran.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 1, 2026

"I wanted to come here desperately, I wanted to see my husband," wailed one woman, who gave her name as Naruemol, as her friend comforted her.

From BBC ● Mar. 29, 2025

To the side, women wailed, beating their chests or throwing fistfuls of rice and rose petals.

From Los Angeles Times ● Mar. 11, 2025

“I’m not a narc,” she wailed, clutching at my shoulder.

From "Summer of the Mariposas" by Guadalupe García McCall

During Arbaeen, they show their grief, mourning with weeping and wailing in memory of Hussein.

From Barron's ● Aug. 1, 2026

"Woken by huge bangs and wailing siren," he texted.

From BBC ● Mar. 1, 2026

His team is languishing until Sonny gets behind the wheel and Robert Plant starts wailing and John Bonham begins bashing.

From Los Angeles Times ● Dec. 18, 2025

Following the Maytals’ 1968 hit “Do the Reggay,” with its choppy beat, steady rhythm guitar, throbbing bass and wailing horns, Mr. Cliff wrote songs that expressed social and personal themes.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Nov. 24, 2025

I don’t see Colin or Mrs. Tilbury, so I head up the wailing stairs to my room.

From "The Bletchley Riddle" by Ruta Sepetys and Steve Sheinkin