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Meaning & use

wine about something

verb·Advancedinformaldisapproving

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UK/ˈwaɪn əbaʊt ˌsʌmθɪŋ/
US/ˈwaɪn əbaʊt ˌsʌmθɪŋ/
Usage warning: this word is disapproving. It shows a negative opinion, so take care with who and what you use it about.

Meaning

  1. verbintransitiveinformaldisapproving

    to complain in an annoying or childish way about something, especially when others think it is not important

    Grammar: No object; it is always followed by 'about' and the thing you are complaining about.

    Patterns

    • wine about something
    • wine about doing something
    • stop whining about something

    He spent the whole evening wining about how unfair his boss was.

    If you keep wining about the traffic, we will never leave the house.

    She is always wining about not having enough money, but she just bought a new phone.

Word forms

third person singularwines about
past tensewined about
past participlewined about
-ing formwining about

Common combinations

wine about the weather
Stop wining about the weather and put on a coat.
wine about money
He is always wining about money, but he never looks for a job.
wine about work
She wined about work for an hour before she finally relaxed.
keep wining about something
If you keep wining about your grades, you will never improve them.
wine about not getting something
The children wined about not getting ice cream.

Synonyms and how they differ

complain
Complain is neutral and can be used in formal situations; wine about is informal and suggests the complaint is annoying or unimportant.
whine
Whine is very close in meaning and often used for a high, annoying sound or a childish complaint; wine about is a variant spelling that is less common in writing.
moan
Moan is British and informal, meaning to complain in a low, continuous way; it can also suggest a sound of pain, while wine about focuses only on complaining.
grumble
Grumble means to complain quietly and often repeatedly, but it does not carry the same childish or annoying tone as wine about.

Opposites

acceptput up with

Word family

whiner noun
A person who complains often in an annoying way.
whiny adjective
Complaining frequently in a high, annoying voice.
whine verb
To make a long, high complaining sound, or to complain in that way.

Commonly confused: wine about something or whine? wine about something or win?

wine about something vs whine

Whine is the standard spelling for the complaining meaning; wine is the alcoholic drink. 'Wine about' is an informal variant that is usually understood as 'whine about'.

wine about something vs win

Win means to be first or best in a competition; wine about means to complain. They sound similar but are not related.

Practice

Which sentence uses 'wine about' correctly and naturally?

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