as in woebegone
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Recent Examples of mirthless
Historically, autocrats are a mirthless bunch.
—
David Remnick, New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2025
Splashes of elegance in gravestone carving appear as the mirthless old Puritans die, people get richer, and London goes royal.
—Brian T. Allen, National Review, 19 July 2025
Why is this one mirthless and artless?
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 29 Jan. 2025
Yet there was a mirthless response from those around him; a realisation there was an element of truth to his chant.
—Roshane Thomas, The Athletic, 30 Dec. 2024
His mirthless laugh might have suggested Kafkaesque persecution, or Hardyesque inexorability of fate.
—Tad Friend, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2024
Susan Faludi Laugh-In On the joyful Kamala Harris and the mirthless Donald Trump
Nathaniel Rich
Silent Spring
Why aren’t the candidates talking about climate change?
—Patricia J. Williams, The New York Review of Books, 18 Oct. 2024
David Remnick, New Yorker, 19 Sep. 2025
Splashes of elegance in gravestone carving appear as the mirthless old Puritans die, people get richer, and London goes royal.
—Brian T. Allen, National Review, 19 July 2025
Why is this one mirthless and artless?
—Michael Phillips, Chicago Tribune, 29 Jan. 2025
Yet there was a mirthless response from those around him; a realisation there was an element of truth to his chant.
—Roshane Thomas, The Athletic, 30 Dec. 2024
His mirthless laugh might have suggested Kafkaesque persecution, or Hardyesque inexorability of fate.
—Tad Friend, The New Yorker, 21 Oct. 2024
Susan Faludi Laugh-In On the joyful Kamala Harris and the mirthless Donald Trump
Nathaniel Rich
Silent Spring
Why aren’t the candidates talking about climate change?
—Patricia J. Williams, The New York Review of Books, 18 Oct. 2024
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mirthless
Adjective
-
In two years Curt Cignetti took a woebegone college team, with nary a five-star player, to an undefeated national championship.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
24 Jan. 2026
-
The Chargers would clinch the sixth-seeded spot with a victory over the Broncos or a loss by the Buffalo Bills to the woebegone New York Jets or a tie with the Broncos and a tie by the Bills or a tie with the Broncos and a loss by the Texans.—
Elliott Teaford,
Oc Register,
29 Dec. 2025
Adjective
-
This episode is disappointingly cheerless overall—it’s not frosted, tinsely, glowing, silver with bells and mist, or snowy.—
Jenny Singer,
Glamour,
3 Nov. 2025
-
For three days, things were cheerless for Courtney Williams.—
Mike Cook,
Twin Cities,
28 May 2025
Adjective
-
Mendy Rendler, a longtime congregant, described the scene as a sad reminder that the congregation is displaced and not allowed to make repairs.—
Hannah Kliger,
CBS News,
26 Feb. 2026
-
Oooooofff, that is sad, my heart is breaking!—
Christina Grace Tucker,
Vulture,
26 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Four Spent the Day Together is a flat, at times lugubrious account of losing such conviction.—
Rosa Lyster,
Harpers Magazine,
30 Dec. 2025
-
Both men’s physiognomy can lean similarly to the lugubrious.—
Rebecca Mead,
New Yorker,
17 Nov. 2025
Adjective
-
The song itself speaks to universal feelingd about loss, regret, and learning to live in the moment, while the Puerto Rican folk genre plena gives it the perfect melancholy melody.—
Maya Georgi,
Rolling Stone,
21 Feb. 2026
-
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
Adjective
-
The album’s best moments come when Joji deploys the noisy, aggressive production favored by morose rappers like fakemink, Bladee, and Playboi Carti.—
Mehan Jayasuriya,
Pitchfork,
11 Feb. 2026
-
Despite its serious subject matter, the novel is neither morbid nor morose.—
Los Angeles Times,
Los Angeles Times,
26 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
Nothing impacting them adjusts the stakes in a way that is inappropriately melancholic or melodramatic.—
Daniel Fienberg,
HollywoodReporter,
24 Feb. 2026
-
That’s good, because ALL MONSTERS’ lyrics are dense with surreal, melancholic humor, informed by Haas’ experiences with ADHD and autism and their trans identity.—
Hannah Jocelyn,
Pitchfork,
23 Feb. 2026
Adjective
-
Amos Mosaner, the Italian who won bronze in mixed doubles, looked dejected after his team missed a spot in the semifinals.—
Julia Frankel,
Chicago Tribune,
19 Feb. 2026
-
The players' dejected expressions are in stark contrast to the elated fans in the stands behind them.—
Noel Brennan,
CBS News,
10 Feb. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Mirthless.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mirthless. Accessed 2 Mar. 2026.
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