variants
or sombre
1
: so shaded as to be dark and gloomy
2
b
: of a dismal or depressing character : melancholy
c
: conveying gloomy suggestions or ideas
3
: of a dull or heavy cast or shade : dark colored
somberly
adverb
somberness
noun
Examples of somber in a Sentence
Looking out at his audience, a somber mass of monks, Gregory gave Mary a new identity that would shape her image for fourteen hundred years.
—
Jonathan Darman, Newsweek, 29 May 2006
This year marks a somber anniversary—it was 150 years ago that humans wiped out the last survivors of this species. A relative of the razorbills and puffins, and about the size of a small goose, the great auk was black-bodied with a white underbelly, and walked erect, like a penguin.
—Bill Montevecchi, Natural History, August 1994
The purple darkness was filled with men who lectured and jabbered. Sometimes he could see them gesticulating against the blue and somber sky.
—Stephen Crane, The Red Badge of Courage, 1895
Her death put us in a somber mood.
The movie is a somber portrait of life on the streets.
He wore a somber suit.
Jonathan Darman, Newsweek, 29 May 2006
This year marks a somber anniversary—it was 150 years ago that humans wiped out the last survivors of this species. A relative of the razorbills and puffins, and about the size of a small goose, the great auk was black-bodied with a white underbelly, and walked erect, like a penguin.
—Bill Montevecchi, Natural History, August 1994
The purple darkness was filled with men who lectured and jabbered. Sometimes he could see them gesticulating against the blue and somber sky.
—Stephen Crane, The Red Badge of Courage, 1895
Her death put us in a somber mood.
The movie is a somber portrait of life on the streets.
He wore a somber suit.
Recent Examples on the Web
The work’s third movement offers an intriguing pizzicato section, as well moments of discordant — though not somber — unease.
—Sheila Regan, Twin Cities, 11 July 2025
On Wednesday, hundreds prayed, wept and held one another at a prayer service, among the first of many somber gatherings to come in the weeks ahead.
—Nadia Lathan, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2025
Both the original Godzilla film—produced in Japan less than a decade after Hiroshima and Nagasaki—and the 1956 version released in the States (with a performance by the actor Raymond Burr spliced in for American audiences) are somber and even daring for the time.
—Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 10 July 2025
Live 00:00 06:12 06:12 Officials give timeline of response efforts as floods impacted Texas
06:12
Kerrville Police Community Services Officer Chief Jonathan Lamb painted a somber picture of how the morning of July 4 unfolded as floods took over Hunt, when most residents were asleep.
—Nbc News, NBC news, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for somber
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Sheila Regan, Twin Cities, 11 July 2025
On Wednesday, hundreds prayed, wept and held one another at a prayer service, among the first of many somber gatherings to come in the weeks ahead.
—Nadia Lathan, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2025
Both the original Godzilla film—produced in Japan less than a decade after Hiroshima and Nagasaki—and the 1956 version released in the States (with a performance by the actor Raymond Burr spliced in for American audiences) are somber and even daring for the time.
—Tom Nichols, The Atlantic, 10 July 2025
Live 00:00 06:12 06:12 Officials give timeline of response efforts as floods impacted Texas
06:12
Kerrville Police Community Services Officer Chief Jonathan Lamb painted a somber picture of how the morning of July 4 unfolded as floods took over Hunt, when most residents were asleep.
—Nbc News, NBC news, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for somber
Cite this Entry
“Somber.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/somber. Accessed 21 Jul. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
somber
adjective
som·ber
variants
or sombre
1
: so shaded as to be dark and gloomy
2
: melancholy entry 2 sense 1, grave
a somber mood
3
: dull or dark colored
somberly
adverb
somberness
noun
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