woeful

adjective

woe·​ful ˈwō-fəl How to pronounce woeful (audio)
variants or less commonly woful
Synonyms of woefulnext
1
: full of woe : grievous
woeful prophecies
2
: involving or bringing woe
3
: lamentably bad or serious : deplorable
woeful ignorance
woefully adverb
woefulness noun

Examples of woeful in a Sentence

The puppy had woeful eyes. The student's grades were woeful.
Recent Examples on the Web
Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.
Mike Trout presumably has witnessed every possible blooper, blunder and boo-boo in 16 seasons with the woeful Angels. Steve Henson, Los Angeles Times, 3 June 2026 But a woeful showing on the offensive line last year helped doom the Gamecocks, who went 4-8 overall and 1-7 in the SEC. Sam Khan Jr, New York Times, 2 June 2026 The Dodgers romped through a weekend at Angel Stadium, scoring 31 runs in what amounted to live batting practice against the Angels’ woeful pitching staff. Bill Plunkett, Oc Register, 19 May 2026 For all of his woeful obsession with numbers, this is the reason anyone ever streamed his music and actually listened. Jayson Greene, Pitchfork, 18 May 2026 See All Example Sentences for woeful

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of woeful was in the 14th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Woeful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/woeful. Accessed 13 Jun. 2026.

Kids Definition

woeful

adjective
woe·​ful ˈwō-fəl How to pronounce woeful (audio)
1
: full of woe
a woeful tale
2
: involving or bringing woe
a woeful occurrence
3
: pitifully bad
woeful ignorance
woefully adverb
woefulness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on woeful

Love words? Need even more definitions?

Subscribe to America's largest dictionary and get thousands more definitions and advanced search—ad free!

More from Merriam-Webster