sorrowful

adjective

sor·​row·​ful ˈsär-(ˌ)ō-fəl 

-ə-fəl,

ˈsȯr-

1

: full of or marked by sorrow

a sorrowful goodbye

2

: expressive of or inducing sorrow

sorrowful eyes

sorrowfully

ˈsär-(ˌ)ō-f(ə-)lē 

-ə-f(ə-)lē

ˈsȯr-

adverb

sorrowfulness

ˈsär-(ˌ)ō-fəl-nəs 

-ə-fəl-

ˈsȯr-

noun

Synonyms

• aching
• agonized
• anguished
• bemoaning
• bewailing
• bitter
• deploring
• doleful
• dolesome
• dolorous
• funeral
• grieving
• heartbroken
• lamentable
• lugubrious
• mournful
• plaintive
• plangent
• regretful
• rueful
• sorry
• wailing
• weeping
• woeful

Examples of sorrowful in a Sentence

adopted a sorrowful tone of voice to read the news story about the former governor's death

the cult seemed to be a sorrowful assemblage of emotionally scarred people seeking love and redemption

Recent Examples on the Web

Kopitar then led the annual sorrowful handshake line with the Edmonton Oilers. —Eric Stephens, New York Times, 2 May 2025

The most powerful performance —compressed, sorrowful — comes from The Matrix's Joe Pantoliano. —Tom Gliatto, People.com, 12 Apr. 2025

The dissolve from a god’s eye view of a comforting, warm embrace in a bed between mother and daughter to the cold, sorrowful chill of Alex’s lonely body hits us like a wallop. —Courtney Howard, Variety, 28 Mar. 2025

No other actor this year delivered a line with more sorrowful force. —Peter Rainer, The Christian Science Monitor, 27 Feb. 2025

Word History

First Known Use

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Kids Definition

sorrowful

adjective

sor·​row·​ful ˈsär-ō-fəl 

ˈsȯr-,

-ə-fəl

1

: full of or showing sorrow

a sorrowful good-bye

2

: expressive of or causing sorrow

sorrowful eyes

sorrowfully

-f(ə-)lē 

adverb