to groan at
1
4.1
- phrasal verb
- /ɡroʊn æt/
:
quejarse de
- My students seem relatively unfazed; most students merely groan at the bad pun.
- groaned at the thought
- groaned at her horrible joke
Examples
-
Students in the audience groan at the pretension of it.
Fiction book (1991) -
The others in the room groan at the reasoning.
Fiction book (1991) -
"Both the other nurses groaned at the memory of that day."
Fiction book (2002) -
We both groaned at her horrible joke.
Fiction book (1999) -
While most people groan at soaring gas prices, Margaret Frey, assistant professor of textiles and apparel, sees opportunity.
Academic text (2005) -
I usually roll my eyes and groan at Michael Kor's corny attempts at bitchy, biting humor.
Blog text (4) -
The teachers groaned at the students' lack of preparation before the exam.
-
Many attendees groaned at the long wait during the event.
-
He couldn't help but groan at the terrible joke his friend told.
Synonyms
∞
1.0
To say you are unhappy about something and want it changed
355
4.2
To make a short low sound to show effort, pain, or dislike
177
1.0
To make a low, long sound to show pain, discomfort, or displeasure
140
3.7
To speak quietly so others cannot hear, often to complain
76
2.2
To make a low, deep sound to warn or show anger
41
3.7
To complain quietly in a low voice
16
2.3
Give someone a worried or angry look to show you do not like them
6
4.1
To complain quietly about something you do not like
4
6.3
To make quiet complaining sounds under your breath
3
9.6
Make a short, quiet sound with the tongue to show disapproval
2
9.9
To make a short click with the tongue to show disapproval
1
8.4
To feel offended when someone says or does something you dislike
1
6.8
To complain a lot in an annoying way
1
8.9
To make a short low sound to show disapproval or doubt
1
9.1
Make a short clicking sound with the tongue to show you do not approve
To feel so annoyed or frustrated that you make a soft unhappy sound
To complain quietly because you are unhappy
To mutter complaints quietly so others cannot hear
To make a short sound to show annoyance or doubt
To make a short sound to show annoyance or doubt
How Disapproving
Surface Forms
Morphology
groan + at
The meaning is directly derivable from 'groan' (to make a low, complaining sound) combined with the directional/targeting preposition 'at' — together they indicate directing a groan toward someone or something to show annoyance. This is a straightforward verb + preposition composition common across languages and would be understandable to a B1 learner who knows the constituents.
Etymology
Groan at comes from the image of someone making a low, deep sound, a groan, when they see or hear something they do not like. That's why groan at means 'to make a low sound or complain to show annoyance or disapproval'.