Synonyms of gloomy

gloomy

adjective

ˈglü-mē 

1

as in bleak

causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer

the cold rain made for a gloomy day

Synonyms & Similar Words

• bleak
• somber
• dark
• depressing
• depressive
• lonely
• desolate
• solemn
• darkening
• murky
• cold
• morbid
• gray
• miserable
• lonesome
• dreary
• depressed
• cheerless
• blue
• dismal
• glum
• morose
• black
• sad
• wretched
• lugubrious
• sullen
• funereal
• cloudy
• chill
• dire
• drear
• forlorn
• sepulchral
• oppressive
• disconsolate
• melancholy
• comfortless
• saturnine
• elegiac
• dreich
• unhappy
• tenebrous
• godforsaken
• dull
• grim
• melancholic
• sunless
• mournful
• desperate
• dim
• hopeless
• dejected
• negative
• Cimmerian
• pessimistic
• plutonian
• woebegone
• mirthless
• discouraging
• distressful
• despondent
• woeful
• tenebrific
• dispiriting
• menacing
• sorrowful
• distressing
• dismaying
• inconsolable
• droopy
• upsetting
• disheartening
• drab
• low
• down
• dour
• lamentable
• hangdog
• plaintive
• discomfiting
• colorless
• threatening
• lowering
• lowery

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• bright
• cheerful
• cheery
• friendly
• festive
• sunshiny
• gay
• comforting
• joyous
• cordial
• joyful
• merry
• jolly
• buoyant
• optimistic
• mirthful
• gay
• blithe
• hopeful
• encouraging
• cheering
• heartwarming
• blithesome
• jocund
• lighthearted
• lightsome

2

as in sad

feeling unhappiness

has been gloomy ever since the breakup with his girlfriend

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sad
• unhappy
• depressed
• miserable
• heartbroken
• melancholy
• bad
• sorry
• sorrowful
• worried
• mournful
• upset
• glum
• uneasy
• doleful
• hopeless
• melancholic
• disappointed
• joyless
• dejected
• downcast
• troubled
• woebegone
• forlorn
• depressing
• disconsolate
• blue
• despondent
• wretched
• woeful
• crestfallen
• heartsick
• inconsolable
• droopy
• hangdog
• distressed
• down
• saddened
• suicidal
• downhearted
• brokenhearted
• low-spirited
• heavyhearted
• low
• down in the mouth
• discouraged
• bleak
• despairing
• heartsore
• somber
• cast down
• tearful
• dispirited
• sunk
• aggrieved
• lugubrious
• unquiet
• desolate
• morbid
• dreary
• grieving
• cheerless
• dark
• dolorous
• dismal
• morose
• disheartened
• weeping
• gray
• regretful
• sullen
• anguished
• plaintive
• lachrymose
• drear
• rueful
• comfortless
• agonized
• murky
• darkening
• saturnine
• funereal
• wailing
• elegiac
• black

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cheerful
• joyous
• sunny
• cheery
• joyful
• happy
• upbeat
• buoyant
• jubilant
• blissful
• glad
• gleeful
• exuberant
• merry
• buoyed
• jovial
• euphoric
• jolly
• ecstatic
• optimistic
• exultant
• delighted
• rapturous
• chipper
• mirthful
• rosy
• rhapsodic
• jocular
• enraptured
• excited
• hopeful
• blithe
• jocose
• sanguine
• gladsome
• elated
• energetic
• exhilarated
• overjoyed
• spirited
• lively
• jocund
• gladdened
• blithesome
• vital
• vivacious
• perky
• smiling
• lightsome
• content
• entranced
• frisky
• animated
• springy
• sprightly
• jaunty
• peppy
• satisfied
• laughing
• bouncing
• encouraged
• pleased
• careless
• lighthearted
• thrilled
• carefree
• zippy
• unconcerned
• gratified
• grinning
• easygoing
• cavalier
• insouciant
• heartened
• boon
• sprightful
• beaming
• happy-go-lucky
• devil-may-care

3

as in darkened

being without light or without much light

that house would be less gloomy if some of the overgrown trees and shrubs were cleared away

Synonyms & Similar Words

• darkened
• dark
• murky
• somber
• black
• dim
• dusky
• obscured
• lightless
• dimmed
• dusk
• darkish
• obscure
• darkling
• stygian
• darksome
• unlit
• pitch-black
• pitch-dark
• tenebrous
• pitchy
• caliginous
• rayless
• twilit
• crepuscular
• misty
• gray
• lackluster
• tenebrific
• cloudy
• shadowy
• moonless
• starless
• shady
• dull
• dulled
• foggy
• clouded
• pale
• leaden
• smoggy
• sunless
• fuliginous
• soupy
• shadowlike
• befogged
• beclouded

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• light
• bright
• brilliant
• luminous
• illuminated
• shining
• lit
• brightened
• lucid
• sparkling
• lightsome
• radiant
• illumined
• lucent
• glaring
• resplendent
• incandescent
• glowing
• effulgent
• beamy
• lambent
• alight
• beaming
• shiny
• glossy
• lustrous
• aglitter
• sunlit
• agleam
• moonlit
• moony
• highlighted
• relucent
• ultrabright
• ablaze
• spotlighted
• starlit
• floodlit

Synonym Chooser

How does the adjective gloomy contrast with its synonyms?

Some common synonyms of gloomy are bleak, cheerless, desolate, dismal, and dreary. While all these words mean "devoid of cheer or comfort," gloomy often suggests lack of hope or promise.

gloomy war news

When might bleak be a better fit than gloomy?

While in some cases nearly identical to gloomy, bleak suggests chill, dull, and barren characteristics that utterly dishearten.

the bleak years of the depression

When would cheerless be a good substitute for gloomy?

In some situations, the words cheerless and gloomy are roughly equivalent. However, cheerless stresses absence of anything cheering.

a drab and cheerless office

When is desolate a more appropriate choice than gloomy?

The meanings of desolate and gloomy largely overlap; however, desolate adds an element of utter remoteness or lack of human contact to any already disheartening aspect.

a desolate outpost

When can dismal be used instead of gloomy?

While the synonyms dismal and gloomy are close in meaning, dismal indicates extreme and utterly depressing gloominess.

dismal weather

Where would dreary be a reasonable alternative to gloomy?

The words dreary and gloomy can be used in similar contexts, but dreary, often interchangeable with dismal, emphasizes discouragement resulting from sustained dullness or futility.

a dreary job

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of gloomy

Inflation has been above the Fed’s 2% target for more than five years, leaving many Americans more gloomy about the future. — Christopher Rugaber, Los Angeles Times, 25 June 2026

Election day weather in Maryland Tuesday morning will be gloomy, with a chance of rain showers. — Cutter Martin, CBS News, 22 June 2026

The words of comfort written for a young, gloomy Julian Lennon have become the definitive singalong at McCartney’s live shows. — Melissa Ruggieri, USA Today, 18 June 2026

The skies are gloomy and overcast, fitting for a trip among the tombstones. — Angie Martoccio, Rolling Stone, 18 June 2026