variants
or less commonly woful
1
: full of woe : grievous
woeful prophecies
2
: involving or bringing woe
3
: lamentably bad or serious : deplorable
woeful ignorance
Examples of woeful in a Sentence
The puppy had woeful eyes.
The student's grades were woeful.
Recent Examples on the Web
But Sporting Kansas City are having a woeful time of it.
—
Phil Hay, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026
This is not a woeful kind of thing.
—Devon Ivie, Vulture, 24 Apr. 2026
The Thunder had a woeful stretch, going 22-50 in 2020-21 and 24-58 a year later.
—ABC News, 24 Apr. 2026
Power-play push The Lightning started the game 0 for 3 on the power play, running their woeful man-advantage run to 1 for 35 over the past 12 games.
—Eduardo Encina, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for woeful
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Phil Hay, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2026
This is not a woeful kind of thing.
—Devon Ivie, Vulture, 24 Apr. 2026
The Thunder had a woeful stretch, going 22-50 in 2020-21 and 24-58 a year later.
—ABC News, 24 Apr. 2026
Power-play push The Lightning started the game 0 for 3 on the power play, running their woeful man-advantage run to 1 for 35 over the past 12 games.
—Eduardo Encina, The Orlando Sentinel, 20 Apr. 2026
See All Example Sentences for woeful
Cite this Entry
“Woeful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/woeful. Accessed 28 Apr. 2026.
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