1
: flowing with or accompanied by tears
tearful entreaties
2
: causing tears : teary
a tearful eulogy
tearfulness
noun
Examples of tearful in a Sentence
He looked up at me with his tearful eyes and asked for help.
the tearful parting of two lovers
Recent Examples on the Web
On March 4, Jason officially announced his retirement from the NFL after 13 seasons in a tearful 40-minute speech.
—
Natasha Dye, Peoplemag, 24 Apr. 2024
Horowitz hugged tearful family members but did not comment while leaving the court, nor did Inciardi.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 6 Mar. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tearful 
Natasha Dye, Peoplemag, 24 Apr. 2024
Horowitz hugged tearful family members but did not comment while leaving the court, nor did Inciardi.
—Marlene Lenthang, NBC News, 6 Mar. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tearful
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tearful.' 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 tearful
Cite this Entry
“Tearful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tearful. Accessed 4 May. 2024.
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