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
  • But the anti-fascist lament has a dark secret history.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 21 Jan. 2026
  • The hit-and-miss driverless experience comes despite Musk responding in September to a Robotaxi user’s social media lament about having a supervisor in the driver’s seat.
    Andrea Guzmán, Austin American Statesman, 21 Jan. 2026
Noun
  • Plus an elegy for Breonna Taylor, featuring cellist Jeffrey Zeigler.
    Britt Julious, Chicago Tribune, 14 Jan. 2026
  • These books can be read as comedies of cognitive dissonance or as melancholy elegies for the very possibility of closure.
    Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 10 Dec. 2025
Noun
  • 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
  • Thanksgiving can be delightful or draining, a festive feast or a dispiriting dirge.
    Kevin Jacobsen, Entertainment Weekly, 27 Nov. 2025
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 25 Jan. 2026.

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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