groan

Everyday

1. To groan is to make a long, low sound because you are in pain, unhappy, bored or annoyed. tree →
2. A groan is that sound. tree →
3. Something heavy can groan when it makes a creaking sound, like an old floor or a table full of food. tree →

In the lessons

In stories, characters groan when they hear bad news, a bad joke or homework announcements; it shows feeling without words. In first aid, a person groaning may be hurt and needs help. Phrases: groan with pain, groan in disappointment, let out a groan, a groaning table (lots of food).

Examples

• The class groaned when the teacher gave extra homework. tree →
• He groaned and held his sore ankle. tree →
• Dad's joke was so bad that we all groaned. tree →
• The old wooden stairs groaned under our feet. tree →
• Let out a groan if you hate Mondays! tree →
• I heard a groan from under the bike and ran to help. tree →
• “Our last romp!” Mr. Darling groaned. tree →

Note

Regular verb: groaned, groaning. Homophone: «grown» (past participle of grow) sounds the same — «I have grown taller» vs «I let out a groan». A groan is low and long; a moan is similar; a sigh is a breath out without much voice.

In Jewish tradition

The groaning of the Israelites is their cry of pain in slavery, which God hears. In Job and the Psalms it is the sound of a suffering person, whether in bitter complaint, in guilty silence, or in prison.

Interpretation. The rabbis taught that God's remembering of the covenant begins the redemption. Passover tells how God heard the people's groans and freed them. The Psalms are read as showing that God also hears the groaning of prisoners and of the individual who suffers.

Examples

• And God heard their groaning, and God remembered His covenant with Abraham, with Isaac, and with Jacob. (Torah EXO.2.24, JPS 1917) tree →
• And moreover I have heard the groaning of the children of Israel, whom the Egyptians keep in bondage; and I have remembered My covenant. (Torah EXO.6.5, JPS 1917) tree →
• Even to-day is my complaint bitter; my hand is become heavy because of my groaning. (Writings JOB.23.2, JPS 1917) tree →
• When I kept silence, my bones wore away through my groaning all the day long. (Writings PSA.32.3, JPS 1917) tree →
• To hear the groaning of the prisoner; to loose those that are appointed to death; (Writings PSA.102.21, JPS 1917) tree →

Note

Regular verb: groaned, groaning. Homophone: «grown» (past participle of grow) sounds the same — «I have grown taller» vs «I let out a groan». A groan is low and long; a moan is similar; a sigh is a breath out without much voice.