moan
n. countablen. a long, low sound that shows someone is in pain or very unhappy. It can also be an informal word for a complaint about something small.
n. a low, sustained sound expressing physical or mental suffering; informally, a grievance or grumble about a minor issue.
He let out a low moan when he tried to stand up.
The long-suffering staff had to listen to his constant moan about the office temperature every single morning.
The wind through the ancient rafters created a haunting moan that kept the nervous guests awake throughout the stormy night.
From Middle English mone, mane, mān, (also as mene), from Old English mān, mǣn (“complaint; lamentation”), from Proto-West Germanic mainu, from Proto-Germanic mainō (“opinion; mind”). Cognate with Old Frisian mēne (“opinion”), Old High German meina (“opinion”). Old English mān, mǣn is inferred from Old English mǣnan (“to complain over; grieve; mourn”). More at mean.
From moa + -an.
Often used with the verb 'have' in its informal sense of complaining ('to have a moan').