Read the following sentences from "The Swimming Contest."
 Back in the house, Abdul-Karim put on a record, wound the handle and adjusted the
 soundbox. The sound of a kamanji and drum and cymbals issued forth, immediately
 followed by an Arab song, sung in a sweet plaintive voice, with delicate, floating trills.
 In this sentence, "plaintive" most likely means
 A. hesitant
 B. high-pitched
 C. pleading
 D. sorrowful