noun / verb

lament

luh-MENT/ləˈment/

An expression of grief or regret, or to express these feelings.

The gardener laments the loss of her cherished tree, kneeling beside its broken trunk.

An adult gardener kneels beside her cherished small tree broken by wind, shoulders lowered, one hand at her chest and mouth open expressing deep sorrow at its loss; show only gardener and broken sapling.

Etymology

The Latin verb describes audible grief—wailing or moaning. Lamenting something extends that expression of grief to mourning a loss or voicing deep regret.

In context

Enhanced Public Domain346:43

the wives and daughters lament their confinement to the island although I think it is the most delicious spot of ground in the world

1700s Satire: Jonathan Swift - Gulliver's Travels (Audiobook)

More examples

Her poem is a lament for her late husband.
He laments that he never learned his grandmother's language.
Their laments fill the room as they mourn their friend.

Forms

lament · laments · lamented · lamenting

lamentation noun — An expression of deep grief.

Similar words

mourn: Emphasizes feeling grief, especially after a death, without necessarily expressing it.
bemoan: Often suggests complaining about something disappointing rather than expressing deep grief.
elegy: A poem expressing sorrow, especially for someone who has died.