Definition of threnodynext
as in lament
a composition expressing one's grief over a loss the composer's cello concerto was composed as a moving threnody for his late wife

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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 threnody His diary shrank to a litany of suffering and a threnody for what might have been. Sara Wheeler, WSJ, 25 Oct. 2018 Most critics acknowledged the score’s beautiful moments, especially Cleopatra’s death scene, in which the character’s plaintive lyrical lines are capped by a chilling choral threnody. Anthony Tommasini, New York Times, 22 Dec. 2017 Threnody in X (FTF), Soda Pop (FTF), Corn Hives (FTF), Facts (FTF), Sophie Brown, WIRED, 9 Aug. 2011
Recent Examples of Synonyms for threnody
Noun
  • While voters are extremely interested in presidential contests and other high-profile races such as governor, most don’t pay attention to local contests, something both Democrats and Republicans lament.
    Anthony Man, Sun Sentinel, 10 Mar. 2026
  • Ravel imagined his Pavane not as a lament for a dead princess, but as a gentle dance for a little girl in a 16th century painting.
    Scott Cantrell, Dallas Morning News, 1 Mar. 2026
Noun
  • In Berceuse Parish, there are so many elegies.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 20 Feb. 2026
  • The show, a sort of elegy for Gen X, opens with a flash-forward to July 16, 1999, the final hours of Carolyn and John.
    Doreen St. Félix, New Yorker, 14 Feb. 2026
Noun
  • The temperature plunges; Reilly’s trills harden into an Old World dirge.
    Brad Shoup, Pitchfork, 24 Jan. 2026
  • Swedish singer-composer Anna von Hausswolff, whose cathedral melodies, intense vocals and doom-laden dirges share much in common with Nordic heavy-metal culture, specializes in mystery and grandiosity.
    Bob Gendron, Chicago Tribune, 9 Jan. 2026
Noun
  • There, he was honored with salutes and a requiem.
    Chris Lau, CNN Money, 19 Dec. 2025
  • Finally, 110 words into his statement, Trump closed with a proper requiem for the deceased.
    Michael Collins, USA Today, 15 Dec. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Threnody.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/threnody. Accessed 19 Mar. 2026.

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