Synonyms of solemn

solemn

adjective

ˈsä-ləm 

1

as in imposing

having or showing a formal and serious or reserved manner

the director of the funeral home has a fittingly solemn demeanor

Synonyms & Similar Words

• imposing
• dignified
• distinguished
• decorous
• aristocratic
• staid
• stately
• elegant
• august
• handsome
• portly
• distingué
• somber
• proper
• seemly
• grim
• grave
• magisterial
• majestic
• po-faced
• sober
• noble
• lordly
• elevated

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• silly
• frivolous
• goofy
• undignified
• giddy
• improper
• coarse
• crude
• vulgar
• unseemly
• indecent
• uncouth
• flighty
• crass

2

as in serious

not joking or playful in mood or manner

solemn as a judge

Synonyms & Similar Words

• serious
• stern
• earnest
• sober
• unsmiling
• professional
• humorless
• staid
• sedate
• distinguished
• severe
• harsh
• grave
• strict
• po-faced
• weighty
• no-nonsense
• uncomic
• grim
• sobersided
• dignified
• businesslike
• serious-minded
• gloomy
• elevated

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• humorous
• playful
• jocular
• flippant
• facetious
• joking
• light
• funny
• ridiculous
• comical
• ludic
• riotous
• farcical
• hilarious
• comic
• flip
• hysterical
• ludicrous
• droll
• uproarious
• kittenish
• antic
• laughable
• lighthearted
• frivolous
• jesting
• risible
• goofy
• puerile
• screaming
• absurd
• silly
• foolish
• flighty
• fatuous
• insane
• sidesplitting
• scatterbrained
• mad
• preposterous
• unwise
• zany
• nonsensical
• harebrained
• senseless
• sappy
• crazy
• balmy
• nutty
• wacky
• asinine
• light-headed
• kooky
• witless
• jerky
• cuckoo
• loony
• daffy
• daft
• cockeyed
• brainless
• featherbrained
• dotty
• screwball
• weak-minded
• half-witted

3

as in somber

causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer

the Capitol's rotunda was draped in solemn decorations of a state funeral

Synonyms & Similar Words

• somber
• bleak
• dark
• lonely
• depressing
• depressive
• desolate
• darkening
• morbid
• murky
• lonesome
• funereal
• gray
• cold
• blue
• black
• lugubrious
• miserable
• elegiac
• sad
• sepulchral
• gloomy
• morose
• sullen
• cheerless
• chill
• depressed
• wretched
• melancholy
• glum
• dreary
• disconsolate
• dismal
• saturnine
• forlorn
• dire
• oppressive
• drear
• cloudy
• comfortless
• mournful
• tenebrous
• melancholic
• godforsaken
• plutonian
• unhappy
• dreich
• desperate
• Cimmerian
• mirthless
• grim
• sunless
• dull
• tenebrific
• sorrowful
• dim
• distressful
• woebegone
• dejected
• negative
• hopeless
• discouraging
• menacing
• inconsolable
• dismaying
• plaintive
• distressing
• dispiriting
• despondent
• low
• woeful
• upsetting
• disheartening
• pessimistic
• lamentable
• droopy
• hangdog
• down
• discomfiting
• dour
• drab
• colorless
• threatening
• lowering
• lowery

Antonyms & Near Antonyms

• cheerful
• friendly
• bright
• festive
• cordial
• cheery
• joyous
• gay
• comforting
• joyful
• sunshiny
• merry
• jolly
• mirthful
• buoyant
• gay
• blithe
• optimistic
• hopeful
• heartwarming
• encouraging
• cheering
• blithesome
• jocund
• lighthearted
• lightsome

Synonym Chooser

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

Some common synonyms of solemn are earnest, grave, sedate, serious, sober, and staid. While all these words mean "not light or frivolous," solemn suggests an impressive gravity utterly free from levity.

a sad and solemn occasion

When is it sensible to use earnest instead of solemn?

While the synonyms earnest and solemn are close in meaning, earnest suggests sincerity or often zealousness of purpose.

an earnest reformer

When might grave be a better fit than solemn?

While in some cases nearly identical to solemn, grave implies both seriousness and dignity in expression or attitude.

read the proclamation in a grave voice

When would sedate be a good substitute for solemn?

Although the words sedate and solemn have much in common, sedate implies a composed and decorous seriousness.

remained sedate amid the commotion

Where would serious be a reasonable alternative to solemn?

In some situations, the words serious and solemn are roughly equivalent. However, serious implies a concern for what really matters.

a serious play about social injustice

In what contexts can sober take the place of solemn?

The words sober and solemn can be used in similar contexts, but sober stresses seriousness of purpose and absence of levity or frivolity.

a sober look at the state of our schools

When could staid be used to replace solemn?

The words staid and solemn are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, staid suggests a settled, accustomed sedateness and prim self-restraint.

a quiet and staid community

Example Sentences

Recent Examples of solemn

This solemn rite is a common sight in the rural South, so the locals extended a little grace to the mourning mass, creating a midday traffic jam on the town’s Main Street. —Theodore R. Johnson, Washington Post, 27 May 2026

Red-coated soldiers, stiff and solemn, called out orders in English. —Literary Hub, 26 May 2026

These photos capture the patriotic displays, local scouts, and solemn tributes from the Broward County community event. —Scott Luxor, Sun Sentinel, 26 May 2026

Former service members donning white gloves carried small pine boxes from the New York State Museum in Albany and gently loaded them onto vintage military vehicles adorned with black funeral bunting and American flags for a solemn 60-mile procession north to Lake George, New York. —Ray Sanchez, CNN Money, 25 May 2026