complaintive

C3O1M3P3L1A1I1N1T1I1V4E1

adjective

Tending to complain, characterized by complaining.

Scrabble 21

Meanings

adjectivecomplaintive (comparative more complaintive, superlative most complaintive)

comparative more complaintive · superlative most complaintive

  1. Tending to complain, characterized by complaining.

    The majority of the medical conversations was traditional (37%) or cooperative (37%), while another 25% was more or less conflicting or complaintive in nature.

    2007 July, L Meeuwesen, F Tromp, BC Schouten, JA Harmsen, “Cultural differences in managing information during medical interaction: how does the physician get a clue?”, in Patient Education and Counseling
    2 more examples

    The winding streams and hanging hills repeat / Loud groans from ev'ry herd, from ev'ry fold / Complaintive murmurs; heaps on heaps they fall, / There where they fall they lie, corrupt and rot.

    1806, Richard Cumberland, Memoirs of Richard Cumberland: Containing an Account of His Life and Writings

    On the Chroncicle Careers website, as well as other mainstream university education publications, I've read articles - some complaintive, some pleased - about how college education nowadays is so 'client-based'.

    1992, Elwood Watson, Overcoming Adversity in Academia: Stories from Generation X Faculty

Synonyms & antonyms

adjectiveexpressing pain or dissatisfaction of resentment

Synonym sets from Open English WordNet, CC BY 4.0.

Origin

Translations

Turkish şikâyetçi
  • şikâyetçitending to complain
Cite this entry
APA

complaintive. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/complaintive

MLA

“complaintive.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/complaintive. Accessed November 3, 2026.

Chicago

WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “complaintive,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/complaintive.

Source: complaintive on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.