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
Synonyms
Adjective
- bad
- blue
- brokenhearted
- cast down
- crestfallen
- dejected
- depressed
- despondent
- disconsolate
- doleful
- down
- downcast
- downhearted
- down in the mouth
- droopy
- forlorn
- gloomy
- glum
- hangdog
- heartbroken
- heartsick
- heartsore
- heavyhearted
- inconsolable
- joyless
- low
- low-spirited
- melancholic
- melancholy
- miserable
- mournful
- saddened
- sorrowful
- sorry
- unhappy
- woebegone
- woeful
- wretched
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 WebScott Travers, Forbes, 17 Aug. 2024
Lonely images and ideas from the director’s first two features—a small box full of cherished possessions, a father’s long estrangement from his daughter—have a poignant tendency to resurface here, as though Erice, for all his formidable gifts, were powerless to tell anything but the same sad story.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2024
Though some of the volumes were reportedly reclaimed before being destroyed, the disposal of hundreds of useful LGBTQ+ and gender studies texts is the latest sad chapter in DeSantis’ proxy war on progressive schooling at New College.
—Samantha Riedel, Them, 16 Aug. 2024
As the eldest, Toni details her feeling more angry than sad, especially about her own health concerns.
—Mya Abraham, VIBE.com, 16 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for sad 
Adjective
Here’s the real sad part: There’s a pretty good chance that commercial fishing is driving these fishes further into malnourishment territory.
—Scott Travers, Forbes, 17 Aug. 2024
Lonely images and ideas from the director’s first two features—a small box full of cherished possessions, a father’s long estrangement from his daughter—have a poignant tendency to resurface here, as though Erice, for all his formidable gifts, were powerless to tell anything but the same sad story.
—Justin Chang, The New Yorker, 16 Aug. 2024
Though some of the volumes were reportedly reclaimed before being destroyed, the disposal of hundreds of useful LGBTQ+ and gender studies texts is the latest sad chapter in DeSantis’ proxy war on progressive schooling at New College.
—Samantha Riedel, Them, 16 Aug. 2024
As the eldest, Toni details her feeling more angry than sad, especially about her own health concerns.
—Mya Abraham, VIBE.com, 16 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for sad
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'sad.' 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 sad
Cite this Entry
“Sad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sad. Accessed 8 Sep. 2024.
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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