keening
keening — noun
1. a long, loud wailing cry for someone who has died, traditionally performed by mo
a long, loud wailing cry for someone who has died, traditionally performed by mourners at Irish or Scottish funerals.
The keening of the village women carried across the hills as Ilan's coffin was lowered.
the keening of [people] — typical possessive construction
Folklorists recorded the last of the old Irish keening in remote County Clare villages.
Irish/Scottish cultural association
A low, broken keening rose from the back of the chapel where Élise sat with her grandchildren.
Pim heard the keening start just after the priest read the final prayer.
The documentary opened with footage of keening at a 1950s rural Irish wake.
文法句型
the keening of [mourners]
用法筆記
Subject is usually a group of mourners (often women), and the noun is typically uncountable. Distinguish from the verb form 'to keen': the noun names the practice or sound as a whole, while the verb names the act of producing it.
常見錯誤
keening — verb
1. producing a long, loud, sad cry, especially while mourning someone who has died.
producing a long, loud, sad cry, especially while mourning someone who has died.
Constanza was keening beside the open grave long after the other mourners had walked back.
be + keening — present continuous use of the participle
The widows were keening for hours while the rain soaked their black shawls.
keening for [extended duration]
Liang heard a sound like someone keening softly in the next room and froze.
Roya remembered her aunts keening at the kitchen table the night her uncle died.
An old woman sat keening on the front step while neighbours brought food into the house.
文法句型
[person] is keening
keening for [the dead]
用法筆記
Subject is usually a named mourner or group of mourners. The participle form 'keening' is far more common in modern English than the base verb 'keen'; you will most often see 'was/were keening' rather than 'she keened'.