gloom 1 of 2

Definition of gloomnext
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2

gloom

2 of 2

verb

1
as in to glare
to look with anger or disapproval we just sat there, glooming, as we waited and waited for our dinners to arrive

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

2
as in to darken
to take on a gloomy or forbidding look he continued to gloom over the fact that he had been passed over for promotion to district manager

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 gloom
Noun
For a few hours, there's no doom and gloom on the news, no family drama, no Slack notifications, no people fighting about dumb stuff on social media. Amber Harding Outkick, FOXNews.com, 14 June 2026 The first thing many visitors see from their airplane windows is the giant LUMEN screaming up through the Seattle gloom. Les Carpenter, Washington Post, 10 June 2026
Verb
Their allusion to the night refers not to gloom but to evening intimacies, the pianist and scholar Kenneth Hamilton said in an interview. New York Times, 13 Aug. 2021 The more doom and gloom the policy makers incorporate into their scenarios before setting market prices and rules, the safer the grid can be. Jinjoo Lee, WSJ, 26 Feb. 2021 See All Example Sentences for gloom
Recent Examples of Synonyms for gloom
Noun
  • Each room explores a different human emotion — joy and love, fear and hope, sadness and gratitude, anger and resilience.
    Staff Photographer, Los Angeles Times, 29 June 2026
  • Working again with collaborators Adrian Utley (Portishead) and Shahzad Ismaily (Ceramic Dog) and joined by Nick Hakim and drummer Tom Skinner (the Smile), Orton uses The Ground Above to create weighty songs that deal with both joy and sadness.
    David Harris, SPIN, 29 June 2026
Noun
  • Even an aggressive plaintiff would know that lingering past dark wouldn’t go over well in court.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 30 June 2026
  • News of a glow-in-the-dark Nike Air Foamposite Pro first materialized in November, with early reports of a Summit White/Black colorway enhanced with the glowing treatment.
    Riley Jones, Footwear News, 30 June 2026
Verb
  • The glaring issue in England’s group stage performance stems from the drop-off in goal production from the opener to the final two matches.
    Fiifi Frimpong, New York Daily News, 27 June 2026
  • Klingebiel believes that some cuts to development may be appropriate, if all federal budgets (with the glaring exception of defense) are also tightening their belts.
    Christine Ro, Forbes.com, 26 June 2026
Verb
  • Auto-correct tools generally brighten photos, but this one also knows when an image needs darkening.
    Michael Muchmore, PC Magazine, 29 June 2026
  • Its most dramatic attack occurred last week, when hundreds of drones overwhelmed Moscow’s air defenses and hit refineries and storage tanks, sending up black plumes of smoke that darkened the sky.
    Brady Knox, The Washington Examiner, 28 June 2026
Noun
  • The pair went all the way down to a 43-mile-wide and 1,500-mile-long depression in the Pacific Ocean’s Mariana Trench, known as the Challenger Deep.
    Bill Gourgey, Popular Science, 2 July 2026
  • The victim's mother also addressed the jury, blaming Rullan for her son's depression and anxiety and describing the emotional toll the abuse had taken on their family.
    Brittany Miller, FOXNews.com, 2 July 2026
Noun
  • Dark figures were darting through the shadows—Germans were carrying sacks and pillows to their building.
    Vasily Grossman, Harpers Magazine, 30 June 2026
  • Reflections, shadows and motion blur can all reduce detection confidence.
    Freddy Kuo, Forbes.com, 29 June 2026
Verb
  • As a 7-year-old, I’d entertain my father’s friends, at their weekly pickup game at a Bronx barn-house gymnasium, by imitating his game face—bottom lip jutting, eyes scowling.
    Sean Gregory, Time, 14 June 2026
  • Modern tiki tends to take a lighter touch, using more abstract graphics, less imagery of women and scowling gods.
    Michael Goldstein, Forbes.com, 17 May 2026
Noun
  • Beneath all the sensuality and beauty, there’s also a lingering melancholy that feels very familiar to me.
    Erik Pedersen, Oc Register, 16 June 2026
  • Early Years Eichenberg recounted his childhood with some melancholy.
    Jessica George, JSTOR Daily, 27 May 2026

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Cite this Entry

“Gloom.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/gloom. Accessed 3 Jul. 2026.

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