# complain

> English word · Verb · IPA /kəmˈpleɪn/ · frequency rank #4,840

## Definitions
1. To express feelings of pain, dissatisfaction, or resentment.
2. To make a formal accusation or bring a formal charge.
3. To creak or squeak, as a timber or wheel.

## Etymology
From Middle English complaynen, from Old French complaindre, from Medieval Latin complangere (“to bewail, complain”), from Latin com- (“together”) + plangere (“to strike, beat, as the breast in extreme grief, bewail”); see plain, plaint.

## Easily confused with
- **complaint** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/complain-vs-complaint)
- **complains** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/complain-vs-complains)
- **complying** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/complain-vs-complying)
- **complaints** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/complain-vs-complaints)
- **complained** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/complain-vs-complained)
- **chaplain** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/chaplain-vs-complain)
- **Champlain** (https://plainspell.com/en/vs/champlain-vs-complain)

## Common misspellings (12)
`ccomplain`, `cmoplain`, `comlpain`, `commplain`, `compalin`, `complainn`, `complani`, `complian`, `compllain`, `compplain`, `copmlain`, `ocmplain`

## Source
Compiled from Wiktionary via kaikki.org (CC BY-SA). Data vintage: 2026-05-06.
Canonical page: https://plainspell.com/en/word/complain