melancholic

adjective

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mel·an·chol·ic | \ ˌme-lən-ˈkä-lik

Definition of melancholic

1 : of, relating to, or subject to melancholy : depressed

2 : of or relating to melancholia

3 : tending to depress the spirits : saddening

Other Words from melancholic Synonyms & Antonyms Example Sentences Learn More About melancholic

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Examples of melancholic in a Sentence

she becomes quite melancholic when she reflects on all the lost opportunities of her life

Recent Examples on the Web The total effect for me is simultaneously sweet and sort of melancholic. — Cyrena Touros, Harper's BAZAAR, 9 June 2021 But his infinitely adaptable music that so easily captures the moods of the times — melancholic or merry, and all points in between — has nonetheless provided a pandemic soundtrack from just about everywhere. — Mark Swed, Los Angeles Times, 4 June 2021 Mythical, metaphorical, sometimes melancholic, Neil Finn's songs have always shimmered. — Katherine Turman, EW.com, 1 June 2021 An intense, funny and melancholic movie about a group of people whose inspiring focus gave the country something to stand on. — Ben Flanagan | Bflanagan@al.com, al, 3 July 2021 Next 22 Miles—the Plaid sometimes had a melancholic effect on me. — Dan Neil, WSJ, 24 June 2021 In the same area, a 30-minute drive away, lies our next spot: the melancholic beauty of the D-Day Beaches, where the Allied Forces invaded Normandy, then occupied by the Germans, during World War II in 1944. — Rooksana Hossenally, Forbes, 25 May 2021 The only exception is Henry's sensitive, melancholic police detective, a grounding force in a movie choking on its own atmosphere. — Jake Coyle, Star Tribune, 13 May 2021 McDormand, a producer as well as star of Chloé Zhao's film, let a howl that could have been a reference to her nomadic, lone wolf character in a melancholic open-road tale about the primal necessities of life. — Jake Coyle, Star Tribune, 26 Apr. 2021

These example sentences are selected automatically from various online news sources to reflect current usage of the word 'melancholic.' Views expressed in the examples do not represent the opinion of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

History and Etymology for melancholic

Middle English malencolic, melancolyk "consisting of or caused by black bile, irascible, gloomy," borrowed from Anglo-French & Latin; Anglo-French melancolique, borrowed from Latin melancholicus, borrowed from Greek melancholikós, from melancholía "black bile, melancholy entry 1" + -ikos -ic entry 1