mournful

[ mawrn-fuhl, mohrn- ]
See synonyms for: mournfulmournfullymournfulness on Thesaurus.com

adjective
  1. feeling or expressing sorrow or grief; sorrowful; sad.

  2. of or relating to mourning for the dead.

  1. causing grief or lament: a mournful occasion.

  2. gloomy, somber, or dreary, as in appearance or character: mournful shadows.

Origin of mournful

1
First recorded in 1375–1425, mournful is from the late Middle English word morneful.See mourn, -ful

Other words from mournful

  • mourn·ful·ly, adverb
  • mourn·ful·ness, noun
  • o·ver·mourn·ful, adjective
  • o·ver·mourn·ful·ly, adverb
  • o·ver·mourn·ful·ness, noun
  • un·mourn·ful, adjective
  • un·mourn·ful·ly, adverb

Words Nearby mournful

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2024

How to use mournful in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for mournful

mournful

/ (ˈmɔːnfʊl) /


adjective
  1. evoking grief; sorrowful

  2. gloomy; sad

Derived forms of mournful

  • mournfully, adverb
  • mournfulness, noun

Collins English Dictionary - Complete & Unabridged 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012