mourn

1 of 2

verb

mourned; mourning; mourns
Synonyms of mourn

intransitive verb

1
: to feel or express grief or sorrow
When he dies, people throughout the world will mourn.
often used with for
thousands mourned for him
2
: to show the customary signs of grief for a death
especially : to wear mourning
mourned for thirty days in black clothes
3
: to murmur mournfully
used especially of doves

transitive verb

1
: to feel or express grief or sorrow for
mourned the death of his son
mourning the loss of their youth
2
: to utter mournfully
… let the whirlwind mourn its requiem!W. S. Gilbert
mourner noun
mourningly adverb

mourner

2 of 2

noun

mourn·​er
-nə(r)
plural -s
1
a
: one that mourns
the book business has outlived most of its mournersAaron Sussman
especially : one who attends a funeral out of respect or affection for the deceased
when he died, the wayward boys he had befriended were among his chief mourners
b
: one hired to attend a funeral or wail for the dead
mourners were provided to attend the funeralRoger L'Estrange
2
: one that publicly repents of his sins at a revival meeting
asks for mourners to come up and be savedJ. H. Stuart

Synonyms of mourn

Examples of mourn in a Sentence

Verb She is still mourning her husband, who died last year. Thousands of people mourned his death. She was mourned by everyone who knew her. She mourned the loss of her youth. He still mourns the fact that he never went to college.
Recent Examples on the Web
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Verb
Millions of Iranians are expected to flood the streets of the capital to mourn their former leader in a funeral that will be marked across five cities in two countries. Nadeen Ebrahim, CNN Money, 4 July 2026 Revolutionary Guard members and clerics mourn on the esplanade of the Imam Khomeini Grand Mosalla mosque. Chantal Da Silva, NBC news, 3 July 2026 May 18 is the day South Koreans mourn the hundreds of citizens killed in 1980, when the military sent troops and tanks against pro-democracy protesters in the city of Gwangju. Roger Dooley, Forbes.com, 2 July 2026 While Sinlaku didn’t cause on deaths on land, Propst said residents were still mourning the six crewmembers of a cargo ship that overturned during the typhoon. ABC News, 2 July 2026 See All Example Sentences for mourn

Word History

Etymology

Verb

Middle English, from Old English murnan; akin to Old High German mornēn to mourn, Greek mermēra care — more at memory

Noun

Middle English morener, from mournen, mornen to mourn + -er

First Known Use

Verb

before the 12th century, in the meaning defined at intransitive sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of mourn was before the 12th century

Browse Nearby Words

Cite this Entry

“Mourn.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mourn. Accessed 6 Jul. 2026.

Kids Definition

mourn

verb
ˈmō(ə)rn How to pronounce mourn (audio)
ˈmȯ(ə)rn
1
: to feel or show grief or sorrow especially over someone's death
2
: to display the customary signs of grief for a death especially by wearing mourning
mourner noun

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