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 dolorous The album’s pointed cover, showing a dolorous schoolboy gripping a phone while holding a basketball, hints at the weighty revelations contained therein. Will Dukes, Rolling Stone, 2 Sep. 2025 Above ground, the images are reminiscent of Bela Tarr or the particularly dolorous stretches of early Tarkovsky movies, an impression accented by the strange siren-like blares, twangs and choral interludes of Tako Zhordania’s otherwordly score. Jessica Kiang, Variety, 8 July 2023 The nodding plume and the dolorous bell. James Parker, The Atlantic, 29 Sep. 2022 The next evening, a lanky youth in military fatigues mumbles something less dolorous from the same podium and Llewyn can only watch from the sidelines as the audience applauds with vigour. Hazlitt, 24 Aug. 2022 Things had changed just enough to incorporate this kind of hard, dolorous realism. Wesley Morris, New York Times, 5 Nov. 2020 His Grammy supremacy, to the exclusion of Sheeran, shows that the dolorous guitarist no longer holds intrinsic sway over the smiling showman for the awards' purposes. Andrew Unterberger, Billboard, 28 Nov. 2017 His Grammy supremacy, to the exclusion of Sheeran, shows that the dolorous guitarist no longer holds intrinsic sway over the smiling showman for the awards' purposes. Andrew Unterberger, The Hollywood Reporter, 28 Nov. 2017 Did Affleck use up his store of dolorous winces in Manchester by the Sea? Christian Lorentzen, New Republic, 5 July 2017
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dolorous
Adjective
  • Lush cellos and mournful piano trills coexist with the overall less-is-more sound.
    Jae-Ha Kim, Rolling Stone, 10 Sep. 2025
  • Similarly, the discreetly mournful compositions of Giorgio Matteo and Aki Oliviero’s score hover politely on the periphery of the (in)action, careful not to intrude.
    Jessica Kiang, Variety, 4 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.
    David Mamet, National Review, 11 Aug. 2022
  • The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.
    Helen Shaw, Vulture, 8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
  • The necklace has accessorized past funeral attire for the Princess of Wales.
    Julia Teti, Footwear News, 16 Sep. 2025
  • Many other members of the royal family were among the funeral attendees, including Princess Anne and her husband Sir Timothy Laurence, Sophie the Duchess of Edinburgh, Prince Andrew and his ex-wife Sarah Ferguson, Prince and Princess Michael of Kent and the Duke and Duchess of Gloucester.
    Stephanie Petit, PEOPLE, 16 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • And utterly heartbroken for Charlie’s young family.
    Amanda Castro Gabe Whisnant Anna Commander Toby Meyjes Shane Croucher John Feng Joshua Rhett Miller, MSNBC Newsweek, 10 Sep. 2025
  • The woman noted that canceling the shower has left her heartbroken.
    Ashley Vega, PEOPLE, 9 Sep. 2025
Adjective
  • Parsley is a biennial that quickly bolts and dies the second year, and since second-year parsley is bitter, it’s typically grown as an annual.
    Karen Brewer Grossman, Southern Living, 14 Sep. 2025
  • Whenever these bitter rivals have met in recent years, there has never been a shortage of offense.
    Brendan Connelly, Boston Herald, 13 Sep. 2025

Browse Nearby Words

Podcast

Cite this Entry

“Dolorous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dolorous. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
Love words? Need even more definitions?

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