sadder; saddest
1
a
: affected with or expressive of grief or unhappiness : downcast
b(1)
: causing or associated with grief or unhappiness : depressing
sad news
(2)
: regrettable, deplorable
… a sad relaxation of morals.—
C. W. Cunnington
C. W. Cunnington
c
: of little worth
2
: of a dull somber color
sadness
noun
seasonal affective disorder
Examples of sad in a Sentence
Adjective
He's feeling sad because his pet died.
People were sad that he was leaving.
The experience left her sadder but wiser.
Have you heard the sad news about his wife's illness?
It'll be a sad day when you leave us.
a movie with a sad ending
He lived a sad life.
The sad fact of the matter is that they are right.
The new version is a sad imitation of the original movie.
We needed more money but, sad to say, there wasn't any.
Recent Examples on the Web
Greg Cote
updated March 23, Miami Herald, 23 Mar. 2026
There’s hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of poems in my journals that come right after a sad story or a happy story or whatever.
—Jessica Firger, SELF, 23 Mar. 2026
The other facet of Navarro’s sad song about the plight of the rich is his acknowledgement that 10 percent of households do make half of all household spending.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 22 Mar. 2026
The sad answer to that is probably yes.
—Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 21 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sad
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to
show current usage.
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Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors.
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Adjective
Sister Jean would pass away at age 106 this past October, a sad metaphor for the fate of Cinderella.
—Greg Cote
updated March 23, Miami Herald, 23 Mar. 2026
There’s hundreds and hundreds and hundreds of poems in my journals that come right after a sad story or a happy story or whatever.
—Jessica Firger, SELF, 23 Mar. 2026
The other facet of Navarro’s sad song about the plight of the rich is his acknowledgement that 10 percent of households do make half of all household spending.
—Edward Lotterman, Twin Cities, 22 Mar. 2026
The sad answer to that is probably yes.
—Rick Porter, HollywoodReporter, 21 Mar. 2026
See All Example Sentences for sad
Cite this Entry
“Sad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sad. Accessed 26 Mar. 2026.
Copy CitationKids Definition
sad
adjective
sadder; saddest
1
: filled with or expressing grief or unhappiness
sad songs
2
: causing grief or unhappiness : depressing
sad news
sadly
adverb
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