threnody

noun

ˈthre-nə-dē How to pronounce threnody (audio)
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

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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
Recent Examples of Synonyms for threnody
  1. lament
  2. elegy
  3. dirge
  4. requiem
Noun
  • For those unable to buy a ticket, fan zones offered communal space to celebrate or lament.
    — Kian Bakhtiari, Forbes.com, 28 July 2026
  • Chattel slavery, in all its brutality, Sojourner laments, could not just be forgotten; African Americans needed to be compensated for centuries of hardship.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 27 July 2026
Definition of lament
Noun
  • But that selflessness comes to feel like the point of this lingering, resonantly sad film — above all else, an elegy for lives unseen and unknown.
    — Guy Lodge, Variety, 23 July 2026
  • What begins as a novel ostensibly about ‘cancel culture’ quickly shifts into a rueful elegy for a dying world.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 23 July 2026
Definition of elegy
Noun
  • Ashura processions are usually dramatic affairs, with chanters singing elegies or dirges dedicated to Hussein, while audience members beat their chests and engage in displays of mourning.
    — Nabih Bulos, Los Angeles Times, 22 June 2026
  • This is the starting point of Earth 7, Deb Olin Unferth’s stellar and sweeping science fiction novel that is part cosmic comedy and part dirge to our dying world.
    — Literary Hub, Literary Hub, 11 June 2026
Definition of dirge
Noun
  • And for me, ‘Amor Eterno,’ coincidentally also patterns how most requiems start, which is requiem eternum, eternal rest, eternal love.
    — Rod Stafford Hagwood, Sun Sentinel, 29 May 2026
  • The biggest difference is probably how Laurie plays the final requiem.
    — Brent Lang, Variety, 4 May 2026
Definition of requiem

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threnody
thresh
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Cite this Entry

“Threnody.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/threnody. Accessed 5 Aug. 2026.

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