as in unhappy
feeling unhappiness
was utterly joyless after his bitter divorce
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Recent Examples of joyless
Leadership sets the tone, and right now that tone feels tense and joyless.
—
Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2026
The previous decade included the organizational mayhem of Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and the drudgery of Tokyo in 2020, a joyless experience that unfolded in empty venues of a city that had no interest in staging the event as Japan and the rest of the world tried to emerge from the scourge of COVID-19.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Pills even out her emotions but her brain is joyless.
—Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 11 Jan. 2026
The more renowned the art, the greater the number of clueless lookers, joyless collectors, donors in search of tax breaks, and steroidal museums.
—Jackson Arn, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
By comparison—and in contrast to its buoyant first season—Stranger Things has devolved into a joyless, uninspired, unidirectional slog.
—Judy Berman, Time, 26 Dec. 2025
The joyless union is being pushed by Lord and Lady Davenport (Katherine Waterston) so that the wealth stays in the family.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 3 Dec. 2025
This hopelessly dreary production is intent on capturing only the compulsive, joyless comedown of its main character’s kamikaze choice to blow his life up.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2025
The idea propagated by Saturday Night Live skits and sitcom one-liners that Lilith Fair was a misandrist showcase for joyless, hormonal angst was totally alien to accounts of what being there actually felt like.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025
Los Angeles Times, 21 Feb. 2026
The previous decade included the organizational mayhem of Rio de Janeiro in 2016 and the drudgery of Tokyo in 2020, a joyless experience that unfolded in empty venues of a city that had no interest in staging the event as Japan and the rest of the world tried to emerge from the scourge of COVID-19.
—Matthew Futterman, New York Times, 21 Jan. 2026
Pills even out her emotions but her brain is joyless.
—Mary Ann Grossmann, Twin Cities, 11 Jan. 2026
The more renowned the art, the greater the number of clueless lookers, joyless collectors, donors in search of tax breaks, and steroidal museums.
—Jackson Arn, Harpers Magazine, 30 Dec. 2025
By comparison—and in contrast to its buoyant first season—Stranger Things has devolved into a joyless, uninspired, unidirectional slog.
—Judy Berman, Time, 26 Dec. 2025
The joyless union is being pushed by Lord and Lady Davenport (Katherine Waterston) so that the wealth stays in the family.
—Randy Myers, Mercury News, 3 Dec. 2025
This hopelessly dreary production is intent on capturing only the compulsive, joyless comedown of its main character’s kamikaze choice to blow his life up.
—Alison Willmore, Vulture, 30 Oct. 2025
The idea propagated by Saturday Night Live skits and sitcom one-liners that Lilith Fair was a misandrist showcase for joyless, hormonal angst was totally alien to accounts of what being there actually felt like.
—Sophie Gilbert, The Atlantic, 30 Sep. 2025
Recent Examples of Synonyms for joyless
Adjective
-
Incensed, Oseguera plotted revenge in 2009 and 2010 with others who were unhappy with Milenio’s new leadership and spearheaded a deadly coup.—
N'dea Yancey-Bragg,
USA Today,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Last summer, the city also confirmed that since Crow Tow took over vehicle releases from the Police Department, no appeals hearings had been held for anyone unhappy with impounding or the prices the company charges.—
Lee Rood,
Des Moines Register,
20 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
To many, this is a sad, depressing thought.—
Big Think,
Big Think,
20 Feb. 2026
-
Shortly after the film begins, Jago returns home from the war alone with the sad news that Seamus has been killed.—
Frank Scheck,
HollywoodReporter,
19 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
And very plain and simple, just depressed.—
Scott Feinberg,
HollywoodReporter,
17 Feb. 2026
-
Nora Ephron for depressed perverts.—
Antonia Blyth,
Deadline,
16 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Schaeffer acknowledged that the Rockies were bad at baserunning — and many other baseball basics — during Colorado’s miserable 119-loss season in 2025.—
Patrick Saunders,
Denver Post,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Frank Lampard, who returned for a second miserable stint as caretaker boss in 2023.—
The Athletic Staff,
New York Times,
15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Community ‘heartbroken’ over sewage spill Philip Gray used to enjoy paddling down the river in a canoe or floating in an inner tube, beer in hand, toward his home in Cabin John.—
N'dea Yancey-Bragg,
USA Today,
18 Feb. 2026
-
The lyrics emanated from dramatic words and emotions expressed by owner Terry Pegula, football boss Brandon Beane and new head coach about their heartbroken hero.—
Tim Graham,
New York Times,
13 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
But Fennell is too fixated on the surface dazzle to undercut the mood with deeper melancholy or conflicted sexuality.—
Harry Tafoya,
Pitchfork,
19 Feb. 2026
-
Turner plays the middle brother with intriguing melancholy and an almost alien detachment, which works within the world this film creates, but not necessarily for a main character.—
David Opie,
IndieWire,
15 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
The dragon is said to scare away bad spirits and bring good luck.—
Staff report,
Daily News,
22 Feb. 2026
-
Weapon system autonomously detects and classifies moving targets The company revealed that the weapon system autonomously detects and classifies moving targets in poor visibility situations caused by darkness, bad weather, smoke or dust kicked up by helicopters.—
Prabhat Ranjan Mishra,
Interesting Engineering,
22 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
But the latest twist in the sorry tale has raised questions as to whether the royals have the full and wholehearted support and cooperation of the nation.—
Jamie Timson,
TheWeek,
20 Feb. 2026
-
And, Mulder and Scully, sorry about that — get back to work.—
The Editorial Board,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Joyless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/joyless. Accessed 24 Feb. 2026.
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