Synonym Chooser

How is the word morose different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of morose are crabbed, gloomy, glum, saturnine, sulky, sullen, and surly. While all these words mean "showing a forbidding or disagreeable mood," morose adds to glum an element of bitterness or misanthropy.

morose job seekers who are inured to rejection

When can crabbed be used instead of morose?

The synonyms crabbed and morose are sometimes interchangeable, but crabbed applies to a forbidding morose harshness of manner.

the school's notoriously crabbed headmaster

When is gloomy a more appropriate choice than morose?

The meanings of gloomy and morose largely overlap; however, gloomy implies a depression in mood making for seeming sullenness or glumness.

a gloomy mood ushered in by bad news

In what contexts can glum take the place of morose?

The words glum and morose are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, glum suggests a silent dispiritedness.

a glum candidate left to ponder a stunning defeat

Where would saturnine be a reasonable alternative to morose?

Although the words saturnine and morose have much in common, saturnine describes a heavy forbidding aspect or suggests a bitter disposition.

a saturnine cynic always finding fault

When is it sensible to use sulky instead of morose?

While the synonyms sulky and morose are close in meaning, sulky suggests childish resentment expressed in peevish sullenness.

grew sulky after every spat

When could sullen be used to replace morose?

The words sullen and morose can be used in similar contexts, but sullen implies a silent ill humor and a refusal to be sociable.

remained sullen amid the festivities

When might surly be a better fit than morose?

While in some cases nearly identical to morose, surly implies gruffness and sullenness of speech or manner.

a typical surly teenager

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 morose One of the season’s main stories has focused on Rick (played by Walton Goggins), a morose middle-aged man vacationing with his earnest, wide-eyed girlfriend, Chelsea (Aimee Lou Wood). Hannah Giorgis, The Atlantic, 7 Apr. 2025 Russian audiences don’t want an exclusive diet of heavy, morose, emotionally draining art on themes of war and sacrifice. Joshua Yaffa, The New Yorker, 13 Mar. 2025 The extent to which Matthew overtakes the story can be jarring, as that process is diffused across several amusing but increasingly morose asides. David Ehrlich, IndieWire, 12 Feb. 2025 In this family road-trip pic set during the 2008 financial crisis, one disturbing sequence after another is played out on the morose face of John Magaro, who is clearly keeping the truth from them — and us — of what this journey is actually all about. Damon Wise, Deadline, 2 Feb. 2025 See All Example Sentences for morose
Recent Examples of Synonyms for morose
Adjective
  • The work’s third movement offers an intriguing pizzicato section, as well moments of discordant — though not somber — unease.
    Sheila Regan, Twin Cities, 11 July 2025
  • On Wednesday, hundreds prayed, wept and held one another at a prayer service, among the first of many somber gatherings to come in the weeks ahead.
    Nadia Lathan, Los Angeles Times, 10 July 2025
Adjective
  • The reversal is notable because this traditionally bleak indicator had been trending more positively under Trump's second term—until now.
    Martha McHardy, MSNBC Newsweek, 18 July 2025
  • Restaurants were closed, staff were furloughed, and the broad outlook on the hospitality industry’s future was, in a word, bleak.
    Lela London, Forbes.com, 18 July 2025
Adjective
  • American kids also experienced an increase in early onset of menstruation, trouble sleeping, limitations in activity, physical symptoms, depressive symptoms and loneliness during the study period.
    Stephen Sorace, FOXNews.com, 8 July 2025
  • Rates of depressive symptoms, loneliness and physical complaints such as headaches and stomachaches have also worsened.
    Daniella Gray, MSNBC Newsweek, 7 July 2025
Adjective
  • That this show could mark a turning point for free speech and the First Amendment is just too depressing to contemplate.
    Bill Goodykoontz, AZCentral.com, 2 July 2025
  • But already there are major depressing effects on the ports and warehousing that are important contributors to California's economy.
    James Bickerton, MSNBC Newsweek, 19 June 2025
Adjective
  • Horgan’s Eva Garvey is funny and nurturing and grounded but also quite lonely and bitter, a character whose love and bile hold Bad Sisters together.
    Judy Berman, Time, 15 July 2025
  • Even the psychological pain can be hard to fathom, especially for those who have never truly been lonely.
    Paul Bloom, New Yorker, 14 July 2025
Adjective
  • The duo stepped out in complementary dark ensembles, with Hayek wearing one of her favorite footwear looks — hefty platform heels — with a black velvet dress.
    Jaden Thompson, Footwear News, 9 July 2025
  • My perspective always seems a bit darker and less hopeful.
    Nick Vivarelli, Variety, 9 July 2025
Adjective
  • Griffith also describes in vivid detail the desolate Hopi landscape and the villages atop the three mesas.
    Sandra Dallas, Denver Post, 13 July 2025
  • Despite its desolate appearance, Bouvet is surprisingly rich in bird life.
    Scott Travers, Forbes.com, 12 July 2025
Adjective
  • This is one time to keep your morbid curiosity to yourself.
    Betsy Cribb Watson, Southern Living, 5 July 2025
  • Using Iris’ old newspaper clippings to validate the seemingly never-ending string of violent deaths, Stefani and her surviving family members desparately begin to look for a way to break the morbid cycle.
    Tim Lammers, Forbes.com, 4 July 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Morose.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/morose. Accessed 22 Jul. 2025.

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