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as in sad
feeling unhappiness the mournful survivors of the disaster were faced with the grim task of burying the dead

Synonyms & Similar Words

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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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 mournful For May 1966’s expansive Pet Sounds, Wilson and lyricist Tony Asher created a song cycle documenting a passage from youthful innocence to mournful adulthood that the composer contrasted with delicately sophisticated yet openhearted orchestrations. Barry Walters, Billboard, 11 June 2025 Nicolas Cage plays a grizzled, mournful hermit named Rob who lives in the woods of the Pacific Northwest and spends his days hunting truffles with his pig, Apple, and then trading them to big-city buyer Amir (Alex Wolff). Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 28 May 2025 There’s a sinful sort of glee in watching all of this unfold, knowing that the same mournful character might be the next one to die. David Sims, The Atlantic, 22 May 2025 The Defender published several obituaries, mournful but proud. Victor Luckerson, Smithsonian Magazine, 13 May 2025 See All Example Sentences for mournful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for mournful
Adjective
  • And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.
    David Mamet, National Review, 11 Aug. 2022
  • The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.
    Helen Shaw, Vulture, 8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
  • Too much alcohol and your dreamy dessert turns into a sad, semi-frozen slush.
    Emily Price, Forbes.com, 1 July 2025
  • Her eyes are big and sad, and her index finger touches the tip of the nightstick hanging from the policeman’s belt.
    Daniel Alarcón, New Yorker, 30 June 2025
Adjective
  • And on that depressing thought, that's how Squid Game ended.
    EW.com, EW.com, 27 June 2025
  • That’s a depressing setup, but the film is a lot gentler.
    Bilge Ebiri, Vulture, 27 June 2025
Adjective
  • Maliciously or willfully disturbing a funeral, memorial service, procession or burial ceremony. Threatening, quarreling or challenging to fight someone, or fighting.
    Shaun Goodwin, Idaho Statesman, 16 June 2025
  • Visitation will take place from 4 to 6 p.m. local time at the Springhill Cemetery in Madison, Tenn., while the funeral mass will be held at St. Joseph Church.
    Rachel DeSantis, People.com, 8 June 2025
Adjective
  • The root of the fallout was the Who (and specifically Daltrey) being unhappy with Starkey’s performance when the band played a pair of Teenage Cancer Trust charity shows at London’s Royal Albert Hall in March.
    Daniel Kreps, Rolling Stone, 22 June 2025
  • On Friday, Devers alluded to being unhappy with how the Red Sox treated him.
    Gabrielle Starr, Boston Herald, 20 June 2025
Adjective
  • Nevertheless, the squad needs to shift strategies and Sonny is here to take them from pathetic to aggressive.
    Amy Nicholson, Los Angeles Times, 26 June 2025
  • Jarvis’ performance is transformative, making Mark both pathetic and feverishly alive, his corrosive remorse seemingly genuine.
    David Rooney, HollywoodReporter, 10 June 2025
Adjective
  • And before long, his pig is stolen, leaving him heartbroken.
    Travis Bean, Forbes.com, 27 June 2025
  • Once the game is over, pink soldiers approach Yong-sik to shoot him and ensure that he’s eliminated, despite Geum-ja’s heartbroken pleas.
    Jennifer Zhan, Vulture, 27 June 2025
Adjective
  • Nike reported fourth-quarter financial results that slightly topped depressed revenue and earnings-per-share estimates, but the full-year picture reflects the brand’s struggles, as 12-month revenue fell 10% to $46.3 billion.
    Kurt Badenhausen, Sportico.com, 26 June 2025
  • What resonates most strongly is the film’s subtler or more emotional moments — the camera lingering on a man left holding a stick after his dog fails to come back from a swim or the scene where Brody’s son mimics his depressed father’s body language at the dinner table.
    Brent Lang, Variety, 20 June 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Mournful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/mournful. Accessed 5 Jul. 2025.

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