1
: expressing sorrow : sorrowful
2
: full of sorrow : sad
3
: causing sorrow or melancholy : gloomy
mournfulness
noun
Synonyms
Examples of mournful in a Sentence
she had such a mournful expression that someone teasingly asked if her dog had died
the mournful survivors of the disaster were faced with the grim task of burying the dead
Recent Examples on the Web
The unwieldy size, the inconvenience, the majesty, the mournful bearing: these elements were essential.
—
Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, 6 May 2024
The night’s opening bit started with Gosling turning Swift’s classic break-up anthem into a prolonged, mournful coda on Barbie and his Year of Ken.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 15 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for mournful 
Nick Paumgarten, The New Yorker, 6 May 2024
The night’s opening bit started with Gosling turning Swift’s classic break-up anthem into a prolonged, mournful coda on Barbie and his Year of Ken.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 15 Apr. 2024
See all Example Sentences for mournful
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'mournful.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near mournful
Cite this Entry
“Mournful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mournful. Accessed 29 May. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mournful
adjective
mourn·ful
ˈmō(ə)rn-fəl 
ˈmȯ(ə)rn-
1
: expressing or full of sorrow : sorrowful
a mournful face
2
: causing sorrow
a mournful story
mournfulness
noun
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