complain

English

Etymology

From Middle English complaynen, from Old French complaindre, from Medieval Latin complangere (“to bewail, complain”), from Latin com- (“together”) + plangere (“to strike, beat, as the breast in extreme grief, bewail”); see plain, plaint.

Pronunciation

• IPA^(key): /kəmˈpleɪn/

• Audio (US)

  (file)

• Rhymes: -eɪn

Verb

complain (third-person singular simple present complains, present participle complaining, simple past and past participle complained)

1. (intransitive) To express feelings of pain, dissatisfaction, or resentment.

   Joe was always complaining about the noise made by his neighbours.

   • 1671, John Milton, “Samson Agonistes, […]”, in Paradise Regain’d. A Poem. In IV Books. To which is Added, Samson Agonistes, London: Printed by J. M[acock] for John Starkey […], OCLC 228732398, line 67, page 12:

     O loſs of ſight, of thee I moſt complain!

2. (intransitive) To make a formal accusation or bring a formal charge.

   They've complained about me to the police again.

   • c. 1597, William Shakespeare, “The Merry VViues of VVindsor”, in Mr. William Shakespeares Comedies, Histories, & Tragedies: Published According to the True Originall Copies (First Folio), London: Printed by Isaac Iaggard, and Ed[ward] Blount, published 1623, OCLC 606515358, [Act I, scene i]:

     Now, Master Shallow, you'll complain of me to the king?

3. To creak or squeak, as a timber or wheel.

   the complaining bed-springs

Synonyms

The terms below need to be checked and allocated to the definitions (senses) of the headword above. Each term should appear in the sense for which it is appropriate. Use the templates {{syn|en|...}} or {{ant|en|...}} to add them to the appropriate sense(s).

• grumble
• grouse
• grump
• bitch
• beef
• gripe
• whine
• kvetch
• moan
• whinge
• See also Thesaurus:complain

Translations

to express feelings of pain, dissatisfaction, or resentment

• Arabic: تَذَمَّرَ‎ (taḏammara), اِشْتَكَى‎ (ištakā), شَكَا‎ (šakā)

  Moroccan Arabic: شْكَى‎ (ška)

• Armenian: գանգատվել (hy) (gangatvel) (Eastern Armenian), գանգատիլ (gangatil) (Western Armenian)
• Azerbaijani: şikayət etmək
• Bulgarian: оплаквам се (oplakvam se)
• Catalan: queixar-se (ca)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 抱怨 (zh) (bàoyuàn), 發牢騷 (zh), 发牢骚 (zh) (fā láosāo), 悲嘆 (zh), 悲叹 (zh) (bēitàn)

• Czech: stěžovat si
• Dalmatian: plungro
• Dutch: klagen (nl)
• Esperanto: plendi
• Finnish: valittaa (fi)
• French: se plaindre (fr)
• Galician: laiar, queixarse, carpir, tanxer (gl)
• Georgian: წუწუნი (c̣uc̣uni), ბუზღუნი (buzɣuni), ჩივილი (čivili)
• German: sich beschweren, klagen (de), sich beklagen, meckern (de)
• Greek: παραπονιέμαι (el) (paraponiémai)
• Hebrew: התלונן‎
• Hindi: शिकायत करना (śikāyat karnā)

• Ido: plendar (io)
• Irish: bí ag clamhsán, déan clamhsán
• Italian: lamentarsi (it), lagnarsi (it)
• Japanese: ぼやく (ja) (boyaku), ぶつぶつ言う (ぶつぶついう, butsubutsu iu), とやかく言う (とやくいう, toyaku iu)
• Korean: 불평하다 (bulpyeonghada) (不平-), 불만을 말하다 (bulmaneul malhada) (不滿-), (in an official capacity) 항의하다 (ko) (hang-uihada) (抗議-), (government) 민원을 제기하다 (minwoneul jegihada) (民願- 提起-)
• Latin: queror (la)
• Occitan: plànher (oc)
• Polish: narzekać (pl), skarżyć się (pl)
• Portuguese: reclamar (pt), queixar-se (pt)
• Romanian: plânge (ro)
• Russian: жа́ловаться (ru) (žálovatʹsja), сетовать (ru) (setovatʹ), ныть (ru) (nytʹ)
• Scottish Gaelic: gearain, talaich
• Spanish: quejarse (es), alegar (es)
• Swahili: lalamika (sw)
• Swedish: klaga (sv)
• Thai: บ่น (th) (bòn)
• Walloon: si plinde (wa)
• Welsh: achwyn (cy), cwyno (cy), conan (cy)
• Westrobothnian: klaank

to make a formal accusation or bring a formal charge

• Arabic: شَكَا‎ (šakā), اِشْتَكَى‎ (ištakā)
• Armenian: please add this translation if you can
• Azerbaijani: şikayət etmək
• Basque: please add this translation if you can
• Bulgarian: подавам жалба (podavam žalba)
• Chinese:

  Mandarin: 投訴 (zh) (tóusù)

• Czech: podat (cs) stížnost (cs) f
• Dutch: een klacht (nl) indienen, klagen (nl)
• Esperanto: please add this translation if you can
• Finnish: valittaa (fi), tehdä valitus
• French: porter plainte (fr)
• Georgian: ჩივილი (čivili)
• German: sich beschweren, klagen (de)
• Greek:

  Ancient: μέμφομαι (mémphomai)

• Irish: bí ag clamhsán, déan clamhsán
• Japanese: 文句する (monku suru), 訴える (ja) (uttaeru)
• Khmer: please add this translation if you can
• Korean: 고소하다 (ko) (gosohada) (告訴-), 고발하다 (gobalhada) (告發-)
• Mongolian: please add this translation if you can
• Polish: skarżyć (pl), składać skargę
• Portuguese: queixar-se (pt)
• Romanian: se plânge, reclama (ro)
• Russian: жа́ловаться (ru) (žálovatʹsja), подава́ть жа́лобу (podavátʹ žálobu)
• Scottish Gaelic: dèan casaid
• Spanish: reclamar (es), protestar (es), quejarse (es)
• Swahili: lalamika (sw)
• Thai: ร้องเรียน (rɔ́ɔng-riian)
• Vietnamese: please add this translation if you can
• Welsh: achwyn (cy)

The translations below need to be checked and inserted above into the appropriate translation tables, removing any numbers. Numbers do not necessarily match those in definitions. See instructions at Wiktionary:Entry layout § Translations.

Translations to be checked

• Hebrew: ^{(please verify)} להתלונן‎ (le'hitlonen)
• Icelandic: ^{(please verify)} kvarta (is)
• Italian: ^{(please verify)} reclamare (it), ^{(please verify)} lamentarsi (it), ^{(please verify)} lagnarsi (it)
• Romanian: ^{(please verify)} plânge (ro)

• Serbo-Croatian: ^{(please verify)} požaliti (sh), ^{(please verify)} žaliti (sh)
• Spanish: ^{(please verify)} quejarse (es)
• Swedish: ^{(please verify)} klaga (sv)
• Tagalog: ^{(please verify)} reklamo

Further reading

• complain in Webster’s Revised Unabridged Dictionary, G. & C. Merriam, 1913.
• complain in The Century Dictionary, The Century Co., New York, 1911.

Anagrams

• amplicon