gloomed; glooming; glooms
1
: to look, feel, or act sullen or despondent
2
: to be or become overcast
3
: to loom up dimly
: to make dark, murky, or somber : make gloomy
1
a
: partial or total darkness
b
: a dark or shadowy place
2
a
: lowness of spirits : dejection
b
: an atmosphere of despondency
a gloom fell over the household
Synonyms
Verb
Noun
- blue devils
- blues
- dejection
- depression
- desolation
- despond
- despondence
- despondency
- disconsolateness
- dispiritedness
- doldrums
- dolefulness
- downheartedness
- dreariness
- dumps
- forlornness
- gloominess
- glumness
- heartsickness
- joylessness
- melancholy
- miserableness
- mopes
- mournfulness
- oppression
- sadness
- sorrowfulness
- unhappiness
Examples of gloom in a Sentence
Verb
we just sat there, glooming, as we waited and waited for our dinners to arrive
he continued to gloom over the fact that he had been passed over for promotion to district manager
Noun
The painting captures the gloom of a foggy night.
He walked away, disappearing into the gloom.
the gloom of the forest
He was often subject to periods of gloom.
A cloud of gloom has descended over the city.
Recent Examples on the Web
Emiko Jozuka, CNN, 5 Oct. 2022
Our imperviousness to gloom is our own peculiar virtue.
—Murr Brewster, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Mar. 2022
Their allusion to the night refers not to gloom but to evening intimacies, the pianist and scholar Kenneth Hamilton said in an interview.
—New York Times, 13 Aug. 2021
The more doom and gloom the policy makers incorporate into their scenarios before setting market prices and rules, the safer the grid can be.
—Jinjoo Lee, WSJ, 26 Feb. 2021
Ben Croll, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024
But momentum continues to shift toward electric cars, despite a global slowdown casting gloom on major EV makers like Tesla.
—Byryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 3 Apr. 2024
Most investors remember the doom and gloom of March 2020—negative headlines about lockdowns, sickness and death, and falling markets.
—Wes Moss, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
The job took 32 months: The launch of the Discovery on a four-day mission in late September 1988 lifted a long period of gloom and self-doubt for the agency.
—Richard Sandomir, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2024
The score, composed by Jose A. Parody, accentuates all moods, from gloom and terror to determination and exasperation.
—Chris Vognar, Rolling Stone, 28 Feb. 2024
Despite their dire retirement prospects, the picture isn’t just one of doom and gloom.
—Chloe Berger, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024
Even an epic Super Bowl performance by Usher can't quite pull people from the gloom.
—Sacramento Bee, 13 Feb. 2024
Rookie Jake Moody’s wide-right miss on a 48-yard attempt on the 49ers’ first series compounded the first-half gloom, but Moody rebounded with a 43-yarder on the first series after halftime, as well as a go-ahead chip shot from 33 yards with 9:52 left.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 29 Jan. 2024
Verb
But, there is still gloom ahead for economies in the region.
—Emiko Jozuka, CNN, 5 Oct. 2022
Our imperviousness to gloom is our own peculiar virtue.
—Murr Brewster, The Christian Science Monitor, 7 Mar. 2022
Their allusion to the night refers not to gloom but to evening intimacies, the pianist and scholar Kenneth Hamilton said in an interview.
—New York Times, 13 Aug. 2021
The more doom and gloom the policy makers incorporate into their scenarios before setting market prices and rules, the safer the grid can be.
—Jinjoo Lee, WSJ, 26 Feb. 2021
Noun
An acute sense of instability will inform much of the content bought and sold on the MipTV floor, though the symptoms might manifest themselves beyond doom and gloom.
—Ben Croll, Variety, 5 Apr. 2024
But momentum continues to shift toward electric cars, despite a global slowdown casting gloom on major EV makers like Tesla.
—Byryan Hogg, Fortune Europe, 3 Apr. 2024
Most investors remember the doom and gloom of March 2020—negative headlines about lockdowns, sickness and death, and falling markets.
—Wes Moss, Forbes, 27 Mar. 2024
The job took 32 months: The launch of the Discovery on a four-day mission in late September 1988 lifted a long period of gloom and self-doubt for the agency.
—Richard Sandomir, New York Times, 7 Mar. 2024
The score, composed by Jose A. Parody, accentuates all moods, from gloom and terror to determination and exasperation.
—Chris Vognar, Rolling Stone, 28 Feb. 2024
Despite their dire retirement prospects, the picture isn’t just one of doom and gloom.
—Chloe Berger, Fortune, 27 Feb. 2024
Even an epic Super Bowl performance by Usher can't quite pull people from the gloom.
—Sacramento Bee, 13 Feb. 2024
Rookie Jake Moody’s wide-right miss on a 48-yard attempt on the 49ers’ first series compounded the first-half gloom, but Moody rebounded with a 43-yarder on the first series after halftime, as well as a go-ahead chip shot from 33 yards with 9:52 left.
—Cam Inman, The Mercury News, 29 Jan. 2024
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'gloom.' 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 gloom
Cite this Entry
“Gloom.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/gloom. Accessed 19 Apr. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
gloom
1 of 2 verb1
: to look sullen, discouraged, or depressed
2
: to be or become overcast
gloom
2 of 2 noun1
: partial or total darkness
2
: a sad mood
gloomily
adverb
ˈglü-mə-lē
gloominess
noun
-mē-nəs
gloomy
adjective
-mē
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