as in sad
feeling unhappiness
she becomes quite melancholic when she reflects on all the lost opportunities of her life
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Recent Examples of melancholic
The film, despite grossing just under $5 million in the U.S. against a $9 million budget, later became a cult classic synonymous with the melancholic realization that teenage longing and ennui can extend into adulthood.
—
Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 21 May 2025
Then there’s Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, praised for its stop-motion mastery and melancholic reinvention of the classic tale.
—Travis Bean, Forbes.com, 11 May 2025
Produced and arranged alongside her husband and musician, Paolo Carta, Pausini delivers a melancholic cover backed by weeping piano melodies and her potent vocals.
—Jessica Roiz, Billboard, 3 May 2025
While people riding horses is a frequent trope for the genre, several moments set at dusk or against a cloudy sky deftly capture the movie’s melancholic mood.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 2 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for melancholic
Samantha Bergeson, IndieWire, 21 May 2025
Then there’s Guillermo del Toro’s Pinocchio, praised for its stop-motion mastery and melancholic reinvention of the classic tale.
—Travis Bean, Forbes.com, 11 May 2025
Produced and arranged alongside her husband and musician, Paolo Carta, Pausini delivers a melancholic cover backed by weeping piano melodies and her potent vocals.
—Jessica Roiz, Billboard, 3 May 2025
While people riding horses is a frequent trope for the genre, several moments set at dusk or against a cloudy sky deftly capture the movie’s melancholic mood.
—Brian Truitt, USA Today, 2 May 2025
See All Example Sentences for melancholic
Recent Examples of Synonyms for melancholic
Adjective
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To some, this may sound bizarre, laughable, or even just plain sad.—
Melissa Fleur Afshar,
MSNBC Newsweek,
7 June 2025
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Banks: There’s a reason why the theater [symbol] is a happy face/sad face.—
Lorraine Ali,
Los Angeles Times,
7 June 2025
Adjective
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The results: enrollees had less financial stress and were less likely to be depressed, but there was no difference in their physical health.—
John C. Goodman,
Forbes.com,
3 June 2025
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Even at a time when film and TV production in Southern California is depressed, A-listers want to spend their time between takes in plush surroundings.—
William Earl,
Variety,
27 May 2025
Adjective
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Additionally, the more fiscally conservative Senate is increasingly unhappy with the cost of the bill, which is estimated to add $3.1 trillion to the deficit over the next decade.—
Kelly Phillips Erb,
Forbes.com,
10 June 2025
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Four of its main characters are in unhappy marriages and cheating on their spouses, which is sometimes awkwardly played for laughs.—
Pam Kragen,
San Diego Union-Tribune,
6 June 2025
Adjective
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Yeva’s story gives the novel a melancholy moral center.—
Carole V. Bell,
Los Angeles Times,
3 June 2025
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Feisty, single, and prone to melancholy, Agathe works in Paris’ legendary Shakespeare and Company bookstore.—
Peter Rainer,
Christian Science Monitor,
21 May 2025
Adjective
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The second track on the LP told the story of a heartbroken barmaid pining after a sailor who refused to give up his nomadically maritime lifestyle for her.—
Josh Weiss,
Forbes.com,
6 June 2025
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Courtesy of Lionsgate The heartbroken little girl with the ballerina music box will grow up to be Ana de Armas’ Eve Macarro, a young woman bent on—what else?—avenging her father’s murder.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
Time,
6 June 2025
Adjective
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The day started again, but a second voice joined the miserable monologue, pushing me to plant beets instead of flowers.—
Zackery Cuevas,
PC Magazine,
8 June 2025
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The win vaulted Miami from sixth to third in MLS standings and felt like a turning point— not just a singular game, but a season statement after a miserable May.—
Kaitlyn Pohly,
Miami Herald,
1 June 2025
Adjective
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For that reason, the show would have always been the curator’s natural point of entry even without this year’s mournful context.—
Ben Croll,
Variety,
12 June 2025
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For May 1966’s expansive Pet Sounds, Wilson and lyricist Tony Asher created a song cycle documenting a passage from youthful innocence to mournful adulthood that the composer contrasted with delicately sophisticated yet openhearted orchestrations.—
Barry Walters,
Billboard,
11 June 2025
Adjective
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Trump has lauded Israel's strikes and previously warned of much worse to come unless Iran quickly accepts the sharp downgrading of its nuclear program the U.S. has demanded in talks that had been due to resume on June 15.—
Sudiksha Kochi,
USA Today,
16 June 2025
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Bane is a 41 percent career 3-point shooter who, in his five prior seasons, never shot worse than 38.1 percent from deep in a season.—
Josh Robbins,
New York Times,
16 June 2025
Cite this Entry
“Melancholic.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/melancholic. Accessed 20 Jun. 2025.
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