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Glite Dictionary
🙍 A weak complainer 😢 Whining weakly 🐶 A weak cry
puling

puling

9.9
A weak, thin cry that sounds like whining
  • noun
  • /ˈpjuːlɪŋ/
  • Archaic
translation icon : lloriqueo
  • She couldn't stand his constant puling about not getting his way.

Examples

  • Listening to the child's puling made her feel frustrated and helpless.

  • He left Port Royal with Denby's puling child in a sack.

    The Black Swan (1942)

  • There was room for my brother, his puling cries when he was hungry, and then his unbearable silence.

    Fiction book (1990)

  • The baby's puling had kept everyone awake all night.

Synonyms

whimper
vspuling
68 3.7

A low, soft cry showing pain or sadness

is a weaker thin cry rather than clear pain vocalization
whine
vspuling
  • Informal
28 3.0

A high, annoying complaint

is more a weak feeble cry and less high pitched complaint
grumbling
vspuling
19 3.2

A quiet complaint that shows someone is unhappy

is weaker and more plaintive instead of muttered anger
murmuring
vspuling
9 5.9

A quiet complaint said softly by people who disagree

is a thin plaintive cry rather than quiet indistinct talk
whinge
vspuling
  • UK
1 8.1

A small, annoying complaint about something minor

is more a weak plaintive cry than a petty annoyance
grutch
vspuling
  • Informal
9.9

A small spoken complaint said quietly

is a thin plaintive cry rather than a brief spoken gripe

Antonyms

shout
162 1.0

A loud cry to get attention or show strong feeling

How Loud

wail
54 3.2
puling
  • Archaic
9.9
peep
14 1.0

Surface Forms

puling singular
pulings plural

Morphology

puling = pule (transparent) = pule + ing

Standard deverbal noun/participle formation from 'pule' denoting a weak, plaintive cry; the composition is regular and predictable.

Etymology

Puling comes from the old verb pule, which means 'to cry' or 'whine'. That is why puling can mean a thin, weak cry or complaint—a soft, whiny sound like that of a small animal or child.