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Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective bleak contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of bleak are cheerless, desolate, dismal, dreary, and gloomy. While all these words mean "devoid of cheer or comfort," bleak suggests chill, dull, and barren characteristics that utterly dishearten.

the bleak years of the depression

When is cheerless a more appropriate choice than bleak?

The words cheerless and bleak can be used in similar contexts, but cheerless stresses absence of anything cheering.

a drab and cheerless office

In what contexts can desolate take the place of bleak?

The meanings of desolate and bleak largely overlap; however, desolate adds an element of utter remoteness or lack of human contact to any already disheartening aspect.

a desolate outpost

When might dismal be a better fit than bleak?

The synonyms dismal and bleak are sometimes interchangeable, but dismal indicates extreme and utterly depressing gloominess.

dismal weather

Where would dreary be a reasonable alternative to bleak?

While the synonyms dreary and bleak are close in meaning, dreary, often interchangeable with dismal, emphasizes discouragement resulting from sustained dullness or futility.

a dreary job

When would gloomy be a good substitute for bleak?

The words gloomy and bleak are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, gloomy often suggests lack of hope or promise.

gloomy war news

Examples of bleak in a Sentence

Recent Examples on the Web What’s the most difficult way to follow-up a terminally bleak, billion-dollar, Oscar-winning blockbuster superhero (adjacent) movie with no super heroes? Gil Kaufman, Billboard, 27 Sep. 2024 So the electricity grid has collapsed, winter looms without heat, the population is fleeing abroad and things look bleak for Ukraine. Melik Kaylan, Forbes, 9 Oct. 2024 Your past albums have gone into that mode, but the back half of Slipping Away is very bleak and heavy. Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 9 Oct. 2024 Alpe du Grand Serre’s closure will serve as a bleak harbinger to numerous other mid-size alpine ski stations also struggling to cope with declining snowfalls, and adds to a growing list of resort closures. Joseph Ataman, CNN, 9 Oct. 2024 See all Example Sentences for bleak 

These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'bleak.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.

Thesaurus Entries Near bleak

Cite this Entry

“Bleak.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/bleak. Accessed 31 Oct. 2024.

More from Merriam-Webster on bleak

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