as in weeping
expressing or suggesting mourning
the dolesome sound of a lone harmonica arising from the darkened encampment
Synonyms & Similar Words
Relevance
Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
Recent Examples of Synonyms for dolesome
Adjective
-
And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.—
David Mamet,
National Review,
11 Aug. 2022 -
The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
-
Brown’s sound design mixes Sousa-like military fanfares with mournful underscoring for Lavinia’s tragedy, neither of which has much to do with Kidwell’s preshow music.—
Emily McClanathan,
Chicago Tribune,
26 Feb. 2025
-
Chaos quickly unfolds when the bickering, different-strokes twins find the calamitous heirloom—although Perkins keeps the first act mostly mournful, as the boys struggle with the onslaught of death around them.—
David Sims,
The Atlantic,
21 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Now the family is grappling with funeral arrangements for the young woman.—
John Annese,
New York Daily News,
2 Mar. 2025
-
Their son Donny attended to all of the funeral arrangements with the help of his wife Jan, a nurse, and his daughters Andrea and Alicia.—
Phil Potempa,
Chicago Tribune,
8 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The record for the shortest Oscar-winning performance goes to Beatrice Straight, who played the heartbroken wife of a philandering TV station president in Sidney Lumet’s 1976 film Network.—
Jordan Runtagh,
People.com,
2 Mar. 2025
-
Listen to this article Skokie restaurateurs were left heartbroken on Valentine’s Day when a broken water main disaster in northeastern Skokie left the village without drinkable tap water from Feb. 14 through 16.—
Richard Requena,
Chicago Tribune,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The bitter exchange was unlike any other in the Oval Office in modern times. 13:43 With Ukraine's future in the balance, a high-stakes meeting on Friday between President Donald Trump and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelenskyy devolved into a shouting match.—
Alexandra Hutzler,
ABC News,
28 Feb. 2025
-
Their bond defies centuries of tradition, where vikings and dragons have been bitter enemies for generations.—
Rebecca Rubin,
Variety,
27 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
The two would compete against each other in a contest that tested both brains and brawn (sorry, beauty tribe).—
Dalton Ross,
EW.com,
27 Feb. 2025
-
Its latest victory came at San Mamés on Sunday—a 7-1 thrashing of sorry Real Valladolid.—
Henry Flynn,
Forbes,
25 Feb. 2025
Adjective
-
Oklahoma represents the sad conclusion of the Trail of Tears, and Tulsa serves as the meeting point for tribal nations—the Osage, Muscogee, and Cherokee.—
Nicholas Lalla,
WIRED,
4 Mar. 2025
-
Police sad officers began providing aid to Mitchell, but medics later pronounced him dead at the scene.—
Rosalio Ahumada,
Sacramento Bee,
4 Mar. 2025
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.
Cite this Entry
“Dolesome.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/dolesome. Accessed 12 Mar. 2025.
Copy CitationLove words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share