1
as in mournful
expressing or suggesting mourning
a doleful expression on their faces as they said good-bye to the friends they had made over the summer
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sad
feeling unhappiness
the visibly doleful players, heartbroken about their loss
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of doleful
Her Night Moves may have been a thriller, though its focus was less the act of environmental sabotage that its characters carried out than its doleful aftermath.
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Alison Willmore, Vulture, 13 May 2025
James, with his doleful countenance, makes the adult Hal vaguely sympathetic.
—Owen Gleiberman, Variety, 17 Feb. 2025
Krauss’s ethereal voice is as haunting as ever on this mournful ballad, where doleful lyrics look back on a time marked by regret and deceit, and get elevated by the elegant interplay between Krauss’ voice and Jerry Douglas’s soul-piercing steel guitar.
—Jessica Nicholson, Billboard, 3 Feb. 2025
But while his focus may be on the end, Mahashmashana is anything but dour or doleful.
—Jon Blistein, Rolling Stone, 19 Nov. 2024
See All Example Sentences for doleful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for doleful
Adjective
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This internal struggle is portrayed with raw honesty, focusing on the darker, mournful corners of humanity that inspired the record’s lyrics.—
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Other tracks channel the mournful energy of the most political ’70s dub.—
Adjective
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Everyone's a little sad in The Holdovers, Alexander Payne's charmingly sour comedy about a student stuck at his New England boarding school over the holidays with only his grouchy professor (Paul Giamatti) and the school cook (Da'Vine Joy Randolph) for company.—
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The 25-year-old wide receiver is sad to see his teammates go, but trusts the vision of the New York front office.—
Adjective
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And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.—
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The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Adjective
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This is a no-win situation because one of us will end up unhappy.—
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The automaker spent much of the year undoing decisions made by the previous CEO, Carlos Tavares, who resigned at the end of 2024, as stakeholders in the company — from dealers to union rank and file — were upset with him and unhappy with his leadership.—
Adjective
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The page so far has raised over $30,000 in donations, with a goal of $35,000 to cover funeral costs and to support Kaleigh and Christopher’s four children.—
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The Avila family has also started a GoFundMe to help pay for the funeral and medical bills for Perla.—
Adjective
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Countries such as the Netherlands and Canada that passed similar bills have gone on to expand this type of legislation to allow doctors to give lethal medication to the depressed and other people with mental illnesses.—
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Yes, our political leaders have given some of us reason to be resentful, cynical and even depressed.—
Adjective
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After Anna disappeared, Alice was heartbroken.—
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A day after the shooting, Chez’s heartbroken parents proclaimed at a press conference outside the 101st Precinct stationhouse in Far Rockaway that their son posed no threat.—
Adjective
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On a tour full of reasons to be miserable, England will leave Australia with at least one ray of light for the future.—
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The series centers around Timmy Turner, a miserable 10-year-old whose life improves significantly after he is given two fairy godparents named Wanda and Cosmo.—
Cite this Entry
“Doleful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/doleful. Accessed 12 Jan. 2026.
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