variants
also elegiacal
as in depressing
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
the sight of an old ruined church or castle can be a pleasantly elegiac experience
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of elegiac
Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 29 May 2025
But don’t let his elegiac prose divert you — there is a dedicated scholar at work here.
—Valorie Castellanos Clark, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2025
The slow, mournful piano chords capture the somber bite of the scene with remarkable punch yet also a sobering stillness, and that’s before the elegiac words carry the song off into the sky.
—Daniel Dylan Wray, Pitchfork, 8 May 2025
The author’s elegiac prose is wrought in English by translator Humphrey Davies.
—Nate Zipp, Christian Science Monitor, 1 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for elegiac
Noun
The elegiac Terenti Graneli was the nation’s most significant poet for 800 years.
—Jacob Whitehead, New York Times, 29 May 2025
But don’t let his elegiac prose divert you — there is a dedicated scholar at work here.
—Valorie Castellanos Clark, Los Angeles Times, 15 May 2025
The slow, mournful piano chords capture the somber bite of the scene with remarkable punch yet also a sobering stillness, and that’s before the elegiac words carry the song off into the sky.
—Daniel Dylan Wray, Pitchfork, 8 May 2025
The author’s elegiac prose is wrought in English by translator Humphrey Davies.
—Nate Zipp, Christian Science Monitor, 1 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for elegiac
Recent Examples of Synonyms for elegiac
Adjective
-
For women, the situation is even more depressing with 90% of women excluded from the workforce, unable to work outside their homes.—
Natasha Lindstaedt,
Forbes.com,
17 July 2025
-
And blame can be depressing; accepting responsibility for something that went terribly wrong is often painful and embarrassing.—
Olga Khazan,
The Atlantic,
14 July 2025
Adjective
-
There was also a 28% lower risk of falls, and a 22% lower incidence of depressive symptoms.—
New Atlas,
New Atlas,
26 July 2025
-
A couple of small trials have even shown that following the Med diet for a few weeks may soften the severity of depressive symptoms in people who already have them.—
Erica Sloan,
SELF,
25 July 2025
Noun
-
Vo’s ongoing examination of empire and identity unfolds here as both monument and elegy.—
Nel-Olivia Waga,
Forbes.com,
17 June 2025
-
What if Durham’s vision for the sequel could be turned inside out, undergoing a transformation like The Greatest from retrospective to comeback, elegy to unfinished story.—
Melina Moe
May 19,
Literary Hub,
19 May 2025
Adjective
-
Recognizing the attraction people have to scary films, the band hit on the novel idea to translate the morbid thrill of Grand Guignol to rock ‘n roll.—
Jim Farber,
Billboard,
22 July 2025
-
The show also has some critics, including viewers who accuse it of being overly morbid.—
New York Times,
New York Times,
22 July 2025
Noun
-
This eatery at the summit of Cannon’s tramway offers cafeteria food, grab-and-go options, and, most notably, the highest-elevation beer taps in the state of New Hampshire.—
Sarah Cahalan,
Travel + Leisure,
23 Dec. 2024
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This lack of resolution taps into the brain’s natural drive for cognitive closure, which according to 2014 study, is the innate desire to resolve ambiguity and make sense of unfinished experiences.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes,
23 Dec. 2024
Adjective
-
But when did our mutual garment become so funereal? Advertisement Joy, it is sometimes said these days, is resistance.—
David Litt,
Time,
24 June 2025
-
Joya had been allowed to pull the flouncy bit off her shoulders, like the singers in ABBA, but since my mother told me to keep covered, the top surrounded me sadly like a funereal wreath.—
Jhumpa Lahiri,
New Yorker,
30 June 2025
Noun
-
But today that moral arc is as twisted as a gnarled, rotten root, and God Bless America has been replaced by the mournful dirge of Taps.—
Marci Alborghetti,
Hartford Courant,
3 July 2025
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After learning of the loss of the iron ore freighter Edmund Fitzgerald on Lake Superior and the deaths of all 29 crew members from Newsweek, Gord lifted passages from the article and put them to a dreamy dirge: The Wreck of the Edmund Fitzgerald.—
Ryan Craig,
Forbes.com,
13 June 2025
Adjective
-
This little slice of heaven in Northwest Austin is far less crowded, the vibe is gloriously chill, and – plot twist!—
Ana Gutierrez,
Austin American Statesman,
2 July 2025
-
Navigate through the shop aisle to the breezy oceanfront dining room in the back, set on a surprisingly chill stretch of sand.—
Carley Rojas Avila,
Travel + Leisure,
12 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Elegiac.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/elegiac. Accessed 6 Aug. 2025.
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