repine
To complain; to regret; to fretTo complain; to regret; to fret.
Translations
2 languagesMeaning
2 senses(intransitive, literary)To complain; to regret; to fret.
(intransitive, literary)To long for (something) discontentedly; to pine.
- express discontent
Origin
Believed to have been formed (with uncertainty, due to the unusual formation) as re- + pinBelieved to have been formed (with uncertainty, due to the unusual formation) as re- + pine, with the verb giving rise to the noun (first attested in 1529 and 1593 respectively); compare the Middle English verb repinen (“(uncertain) to cause trouble to someone, grieve”) (from pīnen (“to cause pain, grieve, hurt, trouble; to starve, pine; to torment, torture”), from Old English pīnian), which may be related.
Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0 · source
Forms
repines, repining, repined, repinedTenses
repine · repined · will repine · have repinedWord family
6 related wordsLessons for this word
3 lessons- A1Present simple — Because it is a verb
- A1Past simple, regular verbs — Because of its past form
- A2Present perfect: introduction — Because of its past participle
See also
neighbours in the dictionaryDictionary text adapted from Wiktionary (Wiktionary contributors, CC BY-SA 4.0) and Open English WordNet / Princeton WordNet (CC BY 4.0, WordNet License); shared under CC BY-SA 4.0. Example sentences and recordings are credited where they appear.