as in boo
used to express sorrow or distress
Juliet's pitiful lament, "alas, poor Romeo, he is already dead!"
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Recent Examples of alas
Denver recovered the ensuing onside kick, but, alas, on the next play, Steve Sewell fumbled the ball back to Buffalo.
—
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 21 Jan. 2026
Essentially, a defeatist tone was set once Shaheed zoomed through the 49ers on his 95-yard kick return, eluding Chase Lucas, Luke Gifford and, alas, kicker Eddy Piñeiro, who tried to trip Shaheed at the 55-yard line.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 18 Jan. 2026
The same could be said, alas, for the show itself.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 Jan. 2026
But alas, if your taste buds simply yearn for a change of pace, the styles below still offer the texture and complexity found in the best amber wines around the world.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 31 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for alas
Sean Keeler, Denver Post, 21 Jan. 2026
Essentially, a defeatist tone was set once Shaheed zoomed through the 49ers on his 95-yard kick return, eluding Chase Lucas, Luke Gifford and, alas, kicker Eddy Piñeiro, who tried to trip Shaheed at the 55-yard line.
—Cam Inman, Mercury News, 18 Jan. 2026
The same could be said, alas, for the show itself.
—Angie Han, HollywoodReporter, 14 Jan. 2026
But alas, if your taste buds simply yearn for a change of pace, the styles below still offer the texture and complexity found in the best amber wines around the world.
—Nicole Kliest, Vogue, 31 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for alas
Recent Examples of Synonyms for alas
aw
Interjection
-
In the north of the British Isles, people sometimes combined ye, a second person plural pronoun for you, along with aw, meaning all.—
Bill Chappell,
NPR,
16 July 2025
-
And then … aw, just cue up the video player for the epic Francisco Lindor homer that won this thing!—
Jayson Stark,
The Athletic,
27 Dec. 2024
Cite this Entry
“Alas.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/alas. Accessed 8 Feb. 2026.
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