ˈmi-zər-bəl
1
as in bleak
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
spent the night in a miserable jail cell
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unhappy
feeling unhappiness
the awful news made us miserable
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3
as in terrible
of low quality
a miserable meal that I wouldn't feed to a dog
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4
as in dilapidated
showing signs of advanced wear and tear and neglect
a miserable little apartment
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5
as in poor
deserving of one's pity
miserable refugees from the war-torn country
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6
as in pathetic
deserving pitying scorn (as for inadequacy)
that ugly mutt is one miserable excuse for a dog
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as in sadness
a state or spell of low spirits
a novel that uses bleak lanugage and harsh descriptions of the landscape to evoke the miserableness of poverty
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of miserable
Catherine Baab, Quartz, 7 May 2025
An uncomplicated measles infection causes intense fevers and a thoroughly miserable rash for several days.
—Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 5 May 2025
Their defensive game plan was clearly to make Kucherov’s life miserable, and the defending champions succeeded mightily.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 1 May 2025
Wall Street racked up yet one more miserable day in a month of miserable days on April 21, once again seeing a sizable selloff in both the stock market and the bond market, as the Standard & Poor's 500 fell 2.36% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.48%.
—Susan Tompor, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for miserable
Adjective
Selling a self-help book based on the life of history’s most miserable writer was, perhaps unsurprisingly, an uphill battle.
—Catherine Baab, Quartz, 7 May 2025
An uncomplicated measles infection causes intense fevers and a thoroughly miserable rash for several days.
—Beth Mole, ArsTechnica, 5 May 2025
Their defensive game plan was clearly to make Kucherov’s life miserable, and the defending champions succeeded mightily.
—Josh Yohe, New York Times, 1 May 2025
Wall Street racked up yet one more miserable day in a month of miserable days on April 21, once again seeing a sizable selloff in both the stock market and the bond market, as the Standard & Poor's 500 fell 2.36% and the Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 2.48%.
—Susan Tompor, USA Today, 29 Apr. 2025
See All Example Sentences for miserable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for miserable
Adjective
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The latest Email Threat Trends Report from VIPRE paints a bleak picture.—
Zak Doffman,
Forbes.com,
20 May 2025
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Related article Putin just called Trump’s bluff on Ukraine, with the Russian art of the ‘no’ deal Ukraine in 2025 is a bleak prospect.—
Nick Paton Walsh,
CNN Money,
19 May 2025
Adjective
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Their presidential candidate, Erika Meza, a 25-year veteran teacher from the Southeast Side, is unhappy with what CTU has come to symbolize.—
Chicago Tribune,
Chicago Tribune,
16 May 2025
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However, the Palestinians are unhappy with the speed of FIFA’s inquiries.—
Adam Crafton,
New York Times,
16 May 2025
Adjective
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Djokovic knew he’d be seeded to play one of Jannik Sinner, Carlos Alcaraz, Alexander Zverev or Taylor Fritz in the quarters, and in the end landed Zverev, which isn’t a terrible outcome, but would leave him with a possible Sinner-Alcaraz double bill in the semifinals and final to lift the trophy.—
Charlie Eccleshare,
New York Times,
22 May 2025
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One night the fish was very overcooked and covered with a terrible sauce.—
Sheah Rarback,
Miami Herald,
22 May 2025
Adjective
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On the show Hill would buy dilapidated homes, fix them up and sell them for a profit.—
Jennifer Sangalang,
USA Today,
13 May 2025
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The manager of a dilapidated building called the Workers’ Cultural Palace gives a speech about his plans for the space.—
David Ehrlich,
IndieWire,
9 May 2025
Adjective
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This tactic is sometimes used to justify letting an employee go under the guise of poor performance.—
Sho Dewan,
Forbes.com,
24 May 2025
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The original doesn’t go that deeply into it, but this poor girl was essentially forced to be a teen mom at this time in her life when all of her friends would be graduating high school and dating and thinking about their futures.—
Patrick Ryan,
USA Today,
24 May 2025
Adjective
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No other governor, remember, has tried to pull off this pathetic budget stunt.—
Joe Soucheray,
Twin Cities,
10 May 2025
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In his last, most pathetic years, Mark Twain threw himself behind the crackpot theory that the true author of Shakespeare’s plays may have been Francis Bacon.—
Graeme Wood,
The Atlantic,
9 May 2025
Adjective
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Health officials have said the United States is facing a mental health crisis, and in 2023, nearly 1 in 4 adults around the world reported feeling fairly or very lonely.—
Madeline Holcombe,
CNN Money,
17 May 2025
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Similarly, a cat was sent to a shelter after 10 years in a home after his owner passed away, leaving him lonely and searching for a new home.—
Alice Gibbs,
MSNBC Newsweek,
17 May 2025
Adjective
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After the show, there's booze, girls, and hotel suites, but Abel's locked in the bathroom, being sad.—
Jordan Hoffman,
EW.com,
15 May 2025
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For someone who prizes roadside Americana, this is the visual version of the sad trombone sound.—
Christopher Reynolds,
Los Angeles Times,
15 May 2025
Cite this Entry
“Miserable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/miserable. Accessed 27 May. 2025.
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