sad

1 of 2

adjective

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 moralsC. W. Cunnington
c
: of little worth
2
: of a dull somber color
sadness noun

SAD

2 of 2

abbreviation

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. See More
Recent Examples on the Web
Adjective
In a sad bit of coincidence, the Hollywood, Health & Society at the USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center honored its 2023 Sentinel Awards winners on Wednesday night, just hours after the passing of its namesake and inspiration, the legendary Norman Lear. Michael Schneider, Variety, 7 Dec. 2023 Heaven Is a Junkyard’s celestial wasteland is a sad scene, but its lasting note is joyful and enduring. Pitchfork, 6 Dec. 2023 Feeling the recent loss of her son, a former Barton student, Mary gets to drinking whiskey and playing sad Christmas music on the stereo. Chris Vognar, Los Angeles Times, 4 Dec. 2023 That Haynes is able to wring something both funny and sad, moving and disturbing out of what could otherwise be tabloid pulp is what sets him apart. Fran Hoepfner, Vulture, 4 Dec. 2023 Researchers found that the activity in the hippocampus followed similar patterns of activity among all of the subjects when they were reminded of sad or relaxing experiences. Laura Baisas, Popular Science, 30 Nov. 2023 Abraham Ángel: Between Wonder and Seduction is the new, sweet, and sad exhibition at the Dallas Museum of Art (the DMA). Brian T. Allen, National Review, 30 Nov. 2023 Maybe, but then there were reminders that, in our sad present, studios were making complex digital scans of background performers and digitizing dead actors. Ian Crouch, The New Yorker, 24 Nov. 2023 The sad factor is that this was apparently put into production shortly before Jamal died this year, as the notes refer to him as a supervisor on the project, and not in the past tense. Chris Willman, Variety, 24 Nov. 2023 See More

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.

Word History

Etymology

Adjective

Middle English, from Old English sæd sated; akin to Old High German sat sated, Latin satis enough

First Known Use

Adjective

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1a

Time Traveler
The first known use of sad was in the 13th century

Dictionary Entries Near sad

Cite this Entry

“Sad.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/sad. Accessed 11 Dec. 2023.

Kids 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

Medical Definition

SAD

abbreviation
seasonal affective disorder

More from Merriam-Webster on sad

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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