plangent

adjective

plan·gent ˈplan-jənt

: having a loud reverberating sound

a plangent roar

: having an expressive and especially plaintive quality

plangent lyrics

plangently adverb

Did you know?

Plangent adds power to our poetry and prose: the pounding of waves, the beat of wings, the tolling of a bell, the throbbing of the human heart, a lover's knocking at the door—all have been described as plangent. The word plangent traces back to the Latin verb plangere, which has two meanings. The first of those meanings, "to strike or beat," was sometimes used by Latin speakers in reference to striking one's breast in grief. This, in turn, led to the verb's second meaning: "to lament." The sense division carried over to the Latin adjective plangens and then into English, giving us the two distinct meanings of plangent: "pounding" and "expressive of melancholy."

Example Sentences

a plangent, haunting song about a long-ago love plangent organ music filled the church

Recent Examples on the Web The piercing sense of place that Samuel D. Hunter brings to his work, the majority of it set in his home state of Idaho, has perhaps never been accompanied by such plangent notes of sorrow as in his new play, Greater Clements.

David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 10 Dec. 2019 Image The pool party is a squirmy tour de force embellished with a punctuating zoom and a plangent sense of dread that make Kayla’s isolation feel like alienation.

Bo Burnham, New York Times, 11 July 2018 Though a handful of tracks feature plangent cello by Katinka Kleijn (a member of the CSO and ICE), who shades the chord changes and enriches the interplay, most of the album is just two guitars ringing out with relaxed, natural beauty.

Peter Margasak, Chicago Reader, 12 Oct. 2017

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'plangent.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.