variants
or less commonly tragical
1
a
: regrettably serious or unpleasant : deplorable, lamentable
a tragic mistake
b
: marked by a sense of tragedy
2
: of, marked by, or expressive of tragedy
the tragic significance of the atomic bomb—
H. S. Truman
H. S. Truman3
a
: dealing with or treated in tragedy
the tragic hero
b
: appropriate to or typical of tragedy
Examples of tragic in a Sentence
Their deaths were tragic and untimely.
They both died in a tragic car accident.
Romeo and Juliet's tragic love affair.
We saw a tragic play about a man with AIDS.
the tragic characters of her novel
Recent Examples on the Web
Jihan peers closer at these images, now sensing in some of them that her father seems preoccupied, as if already aware of the tragic fate that would befall him.
—Leila Latif, IndieWire, 2 Sep. 2025
Tributes poured in after the tragic deaths of the brother and sister.
—Kc Baker, People.com, 2 Sep. 2025
The move comes after lawsuits and reports linking the chatbot to tragic incidents involving teens and adults in crisis.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 2 Sep. 2025
The first-time father, who works for the Los Angeles Fire Department, was married to nursing influencer Hailey Okula — best known as Nurse Hailey on social media — up until her tragic death on March 29.
—Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tragic
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Leila Latif, IndieWire, 2 Sep. 2025
Tributes poured in after the tragic deaths of the brother and sister.
—Kc Baker, People.com, 2 Sep. 2025
The move comes after lawsuits and reports linking the chatbot to tragic incidents involving teens and adults in crisis.
—Aamir Khollam, Interesting Engineering, 2 Sep. 2025
The first-time father, who works for the Los Angeles Fire Department, was married to nursing influencer Hailey Okula — best known as Nurse Hailey on social media — up until her tragic death on March 29.
—Ryan Brennan, Miami Herald, 2 Sep. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tragic
Cite this Entry
“Tragic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tragic. Accessed 9 Sep. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tragic
adjective
trag·ic
ˈtraj-ik 
1
: of, marked by, or expressive of tragedy
2
: dealing with or appearing in tragedy
a tragic hero
3
: very unfortunate : deplorable
a tragic mistake
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