1
as in bleak
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
spent her last years in the disconsolate environs of a cheap boarding house
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unhappy
feeling unhappiness
she was utterly disconsolate when her best friend moved away
Synonyms & Similar Words
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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.
Recent Examples of disconsolate
Last week, a moving van transported Andrew’s possessions from his home in Windsor’s Royal Lodge to a farm on the King’s Sandringham estate, after he was photographed, disconsolate, riding a horse.
—
Sam Knight, New Yorker, 16 Feb. 2026
Amby is disconsolate on the drive home.
—Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2025
As Wilshere and his players greeted the Norwich fans, across the Riverside pitch, Michael Carrick and his Middlesbrough squad were conducting a disconsolate lap of appreciation in a largely emptied stadium.
—Michael Walker, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2025
After noticing disconsolate tourists wandering the perimeter, Taskinen proposed installing a café on the ground floor and restoring the building’s four spacious apartments into modest but comfortable rooms filled with Artek furniture.
—Michael Snyder, Travel + Leisure, 14 Apr. 2025
My father, disconsolate, would pace around what had once been their home in an exaggerated performance of his own uselessness.
—Hazlitt, 2 Apr. 2025
Outside, a disconsolate Santa presses his forehead against the building next door.
—Liam Sherwin-Murray, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
By the time the judge adjourned the court, Bryan was disconsolate.
—Michael Luo, The New Yorker, 29 July 2024
Context: Harris — who served as district attorney of San Francisco, as attorney general of California and as a U.S. senator from the state between 2017 and 2021 — could help electrify an exhausted, disconsolate party.
—Jacob Knutson, Axios, 22 July 2024
Sam Knight, New Yorker, 16 Feb. 2026
Amby is disconsolate on the drive home.
—Literary Hub, 4 Sep. 2025
As Wilshere and his players greeted the Norwich fans, across the Riverside pitch, Michael Carrick and his Middlesbrough squad were conducting a disconsolate lap of appreciation in a largely emptied stadium.
—Michael Walker, New York Times, 27 Apr. 2025
After noticing disconsolate tourists wandering the perimeter, Taskinen proposed installing a café on the ground floor and restoring the building’s four spacious apartments into modest but comfortable rooms filled with Artek furniture.
—Michael Snyder, Travel + Leisure, 14 Apr. 2025
My father, disconsolate, would pace around what had once been their home in an exaggerated performance of his own uselessness.
—Hazlitt, 2 Apr. 2025
Outside, a disconsolate Santa presses his forehead against the building next door.
—Liam Sherwin-Murray, Harper's Magazine, 2 Jan. 2025
By the time the judge adjourned the court, Bryan was disconsolate.
—Michael Luo, The New Yorker, 29 July 2024
Context: Harris — who served as district attorney of San Francisco, as attorney general of California and as a U.S. senator from the state between 2017 and 2021 — could help electrify an exhausted, disconsolate party.
—Jacob Knutson, Axios, 22 July 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for disconsolate
Adjective
-
That’s partly because their bleak ending feels like a foregone conclusion from the start, even as Levinson’s frequently funny script crackles with comic depravity.—
Alison Foreman,
IndieWire,
10 Apr. 2026
-
While the subject matter is bleak, Almodóvar balances the darkness with a tenderness and sensitivity that comes from a career of exploring women's lives at their most intimate.—
Kevin Jacobsen,
Entertainment Weekly,
9 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Fast-forward to the April 7 special election brought to a ballot by residents unhappy with the changes.—
John Aguilar,
Denver Post,
19 Apr. 2026
-
One of them, Amy, a blond child with limp ponytails and a thin dress that looks like it might have been stained, stands outside a porch door, her fists balled up, mouth open, angry or unhappy or both.—
Vince Aletti,
New Yorker,
18 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Natalia, a lonely Brazilian centenarian, anchors this searching novel.—
The New Yorker,
New Yorker,
20 Apr. 2026
-
In a just world, Katie and Sunny would find love with people that deserve them, and Archie would be left to contemplate his sad, lonely existence.—
Erin Qualey,
Vulture,
20 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
All our thoughts are with his family and loved ones at this incredibly sad time.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
16 Apr. 2026
-
That was very sad that Soft Cell’s Dave Ball died at just 66.—
Pat Saperstein,
Variety,
16 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
Take 25 Hours, in Long Island City, for example, which is freighted with a depressing ambience that is equal parts chemistry lab and subterranean grotto.—
Vince Aletti,
New Yorker,
17 Apr. 2026
-
Dede Ayite’s costume design nails each character, from Catherine’s slouchy, depressing sweats-and-flannels to Claire’s chic, New York casual-glam.—
Greg Evans,
Deadline,
16 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The father, Jagdish, told me that one of his children was vomiting and the other had bloody stools; both were depressed.—
Sarah Stillman,
New Yorker,
13 Apr. 2026
-
So why are young Americans so depressed about their economic future?—
Idrees Kahloon,
The Atlantic,
13 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The band also hopes to provide a jolt of musical energy at otherwise somber protests.—
Adrian Florido,
NPR,
16 Apr. 2026
-
Picasso's grandson, Olivier Widmaier Picasso, said the painting is rendered in the artist's signature style and the grey, white and cream composition reflects the sombre mood of the era, per Reuters.—
Michelle Del Rey,
USA Today,
15 Apr. 2026
Adjective
-
The singer's brother Eric Stefani wrote the first version, and modified it with help from a freshly heartbroken Gwen, who had just broken up with the band's bassist Tony Kanal — one of a few times in music history that the subject of the song also contributed to its production.—
Stephanie Sengwe,
PEOPLE,
15 Apr. 2026
-
Jamel Davis’ longtime live-in girlfriend first asked her son to stop smoking in the family’s home in the Walt Whitman Houses near Fort Greene Park, sparking a fight, according to the slain man’s heartbroken brother.—
Nicholas Williams,
New York Daily News,
14 Apr. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Disconsolate.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/disconsolate. Accessed 23 Apr. 2026.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
