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
The absences of both All-Star point guards have contributed to Dallas’ and Indiana’s woeful offenses, which rank 26th and 30th in the NBA, respectively.
—
Mike Curtis, Dallas Morning News, 22 Feb. 2026
The team that started the season a woeful 6-21 is now 26-28 and sits a percentage point behind the Portland Trail Blazers for ninth place in the Western Conference.
—Janis Carr, Oc Register, 19 Feb. 2026
The Padres were mostly woeful for a decade before Preller’s arrival and wholly awful the first five seasons under his direction.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2026
Of all of the woes the Rockies experienced in the 2025 season, their starting pitching was the most woeful.
—Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 7 Feb. 2026
See All Example Sentences for woeful
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Mike Curtis, Dallas Morning News, 22 Feb. 2026
The team that started the season a woeful 6-21 is now 26-28 and sits a percentage point behind the Portland Trail Blazers for ninth place in the Western Conference.
—Janis Carr, Oc Register, 19 Feb. 2026
The Padres were mostly woeful for a decade before Preller’s arrival and wholly awful the first five seasons under his direction.
—Kevin Acee, San Diego Union-Tribune, 16 Feb. 2026
Of all of the woes the Rockies experienced in the 2025 season, their starting pitching was the most woeful.
—Patrick Saunders, Denver Post, 7 Feb. 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 24 Feb. 2026.
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