Synonyms of mournful

mournful

adjective

ˈmȯrn-fəl 

1

as in weeping

expressing or suggesting mourning

she had such a mournful expression that someone teasingly asked if her dog had died

Synonyms & Similar Words

• weeping
• funeral
• heartbroken
• bitter
• wailing
• grieving
• melancholy
• sorrowful
• sad
• doleful
• anguished
• plaintive
• lugubrious
• tearful
• dolorous
• lamentable
• somber
• aching
• agonized
• regretful
• rueful
• unhappy
• sorry
• plangent
• funereal
• woeful
• crying
• depressed
• morbid
• dark
• bleak
• elegiac
• bewailing
• deploring
• dolesome
• bemoaning
• pathetic
• keening
• disconsolate
• downcast
• dejected
• gloomy
• moody
• miserable
• forlorn
• heartsick
• dispirited
• woebegone
• inconsolable
• darkening
• despondent
• desolate
• glum
• careworn
• crestfallen
• groaning
• morose
• piteous
• moaning
• bleeding
• gray
• sullen
• howling
• brokenhearted
• cheerless
• black
• downhearted
• pessimistic
• dirgelike
• suffering
• heartsore
• joyless
• dismal
• low-spirited
• low
• wretched
• saturnine
• dreary
• triste
• comfortless
• bawling
• yammering

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• joyful
• triumphant
• happy
• cheerful
• cheery
• bright
• delighted
• smiling
• joyous
• laughing
• rejoicing
• merry
• exulting
• jolly
• buoyant
• mirthful
• blissful
• lighthearted
• blithe
• optimistic
• hopeful
• glorying
• encouraging
• cheering
• rapturous
• ecstatic
• rhapsodic
• blithesome
• euphoric
• jocund
• giddy
• heady
• elated
• exhilarated

2

as in sad

feeling unhappiness

the mournful survivors of the disaster were faced with the grim task of burying the dead

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sad
• unhappy
• heartbroken
• depressed
• melancholy
• miserable
• sorrowful
• bad
• sorry
• doleful
• upset
• melancholic
• worried
• uneasy
• gloomy
• forlorn
• disconsolate
• downcast
• woebegone
• disappointed
• dejected
• hopeless
• glum
• troubled
• joyless
• heartsick
• inconsolable
• despondent
• blue
• crestfallen
• woeful
• hangdog
• wretched
• saddened
• depressing
• droopy
• brokenhearted
• distressed
• suicidal
• heavyhearted
• down
• low-spirited
• downhearted
• low
• heartsore
• down in the mouth
• tearful
• despairing
• discouraged
• somber
• grieving
• plaintive
• aggrieved
• cast down
• unquiet
• lugubrious
• weeping
• dolorous
• sunk
• bleak
• anguished
• dispirited
• morbid
• regretful
• lachrymose
• desolate
• elegiac
• rueful
• wailing
• morose
• disheartened
• agonized
• sullen
• cheerless
• funereal
• dark
• gray
• dismal
• dreary
• saturnine
• drear
• comfortless
• black
• darkening
• murky

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• joyous
• joyful
• cheerful
• jubilant
• cheery
• happy
• upbeat
• gleeful
• buoyant
• blissful
• exuberant
• exultant
• glad
• rapturous
• ecstatic
• sunny
• rhapsodic
• euphoric
• merry
• jovial
• buoyed
• mirthful
• jolly
• delighted
• chipper
• enraptured
• jocular
• blithe
• optimistic
• hopeful
• jocose
• excited
• rosy
• sanguine
• gladsome
• spirited
• energetic
• jocund
• blithesome
• gladdened
• elated
• exhilarated
• overjoyed
• lively
• vivacious
• jaunty
• vital
• sprightly
• smiling
• lightsome
• perky
• animated
• entranced
• content
• peppy
• frisky
• laughing
• bouncing
• satisfied
• springy
• encouraged
• careless
• pleased
• lighthearted
• zippy
• unconcerned
• carefree
• thrilled
• gratified
• grinning
• easygoing
• cavalier
• insouciant
• heartened
• boon
• sprightful
• beaming
• happy-go-lucky
• devil-may-care

3

as in depressing

causing unhappiness

the mournful death of a beloved entertainer

Synonyms & Similar Words

• sad
• depressing
• pathetic
• melancholy
• tearful
• heartbreaking
• unfortunate
• disturbing
• saddening
• teary
• dismal
• dreary
• drear
• sorry
• heartrending
• distressful
• lamentable
• deplorable
• poignant
• disquieting
• woeful
• distressing
• grievous
• perturbing
• moving
• touching
• discomforting
• discouraging
• affecting
• dispiriting
• disheartening
• discomposing

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• happy
• cheery
• glad
• inspiring
• uplifting
• pleasant
• stirring
• delightful
• stimulating
• heartening
• welcome
• agreeable
• satisfying
• enjoyable
• cheering
• pleasing
• pleasurable
• heartwarming
• exhilarating
• thrilling

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of mournful

The teen’s father, Jesus Rivas, looked at the screen with a mournful expression and repeatedly checked on Martínez as their lawyer, Patrick Steinfeld, sat next to them. — Nancy Dillon, Rolling Stone, 21 July 2026

The teen’s father, Jesus Rivas, looked at the screen with a mournful expression and repeatedly checked on his wife. — Nancy Dillon, VIBE.com, 21 July 2026

The years have only intensified Zimmerman’s mournful, hushed vocal performance, and Dream Me a Dream often plays out like a bedtime story spun by a beloved elder, accompanied by soft strings, shakers, and even a synth or two. — Hattie Lindert, Pitchfork, 19 June 2026

The drama can stir up nostalgia and mournful emotions, and feels personal to many. — Alyssa Goldberg, USA Today, 3 June 2026