variants
also elegiacal
as in depressing
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
the sight of an old ruined church or castle can be a pleasantly elegiac experience
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Examples of elegiac in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
McAlpine’s work was funny and forthright, but also vaguely elegiac.
—Amanda Petrusich, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
In elegiac prose woven with humor, imagination, sensuality, and tragedy, Henry Hoke’s Open Throat is a marvel of storytelling, a universal journey through a wondrous and menacing world told by a lovable mountain lion.
—Sarah Yang, Sunset Magazine, 17 June 2024
In this elegiac history, Joyce presents a painstaking account of a way of life to which, until recently, the vast majority of humanity was bound.
—The New Yorker, 12 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for elegiac 
Adjective
The book is tender and elegiac, an ode to male friendship; O’Hagan was moved to write it after Martin’s early death, from cancer.
—Anna Russell, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
McAlpine’s work was funny and forthright, but also vaguely elegiac.
—Amanda Petrusich, The New Yorker, 17 June 2024
In elegiac prose woven with humor, imagination, sensuality, and tragedy, Henry Hoke’s Open Throat is a marvel of storytelling, a universal journey through a wondrous and menacing world told by a lovable mountain lion.
—Sarah Yang, Sunset Magazine, 17 June 2024
In this elegiac history, Joyce presents a painstaking account of a way of life to which, until recently, the vast majority of humanity was bound.
—The New Yorker, 12 June 2024
See all Example Sentences for elegiac
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'elegiac.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Thesaurus Entries Near elegiac
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“Elegiac.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elegiac. Accessed 19 Sep. 2024.
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