ˈmi-zər-bəl
1
as in bleak
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
spent the night in a miserable jail cell
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in unhappy
feeling unhappiness
the awful news made us miserable
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in terrible
of low quality
a miserable meal that I wouldn't feed to a dog
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4
as in dilapidated
showing signs of advanced wear and tear and neglect
a miserable little apartment
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5
as in poor
deserving of one's pity
miserable refugees from the war-torn country
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6
as in pathetic
deserving pitying scorn (as for inadequacy)
that ugly mutt is one miserable excuse for a dog
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of miserable
Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 30 Dec. 2025
This luxuriant, almost decadent virtuosity can feel out of synch with a tale of miserable, penny-pinching extremes.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2025
Over time, international attention to Gaza will fade, particularly if limited violence does not become massive and if the humanitarian situation is miserable rather than catastrophic.
—Daniel Byman, Foreign Affairs, 23 Dec. 2025
Ultimately the findings suggest life for a Roman soldier at Hadrian’s Wall was pretty miserable, the researchers said.
—Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 22 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for miserable
Adjective
And with that comes a miserable, complicated, and ironically unenviable predicament for general manager Mike Grier.
—Dieter Kurtenbach, Mercury News, 30 Dec. 2025
This luxuriant, almost decadent virtuosity can feel out of synch with a tale of miserable, penny-pinching extremes.
—Justin Chang, New Yorker, 23 Dec. 2025
Over time, international attention to Gaza will fade, particularly if limited violence does not become massive and if the humanitarian situation is miserable rather than catastrophic.
—Daniel Byman, Foreign Affairs, 23 Dec. 2025
Ultimately the findings suggest life for a Roman soldier at Hadrian’s Wall was pretty miserable, the researchers said.
—Claire Cameron, Scientific American, 22 Dec. 2025
See All Example Sentences for miserable
Recent Examples of Synonyms for miserable
Adjective
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Tautly written, this first novel by a former criminal lawyer who spent 17 years in the Arctic is a hard look at the desolate lives of people resigned to life in the bleak far north.—
Sandra Dallas,
Denver Post,
24 Jan. 2026
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Both Bird and Clausen play this mounting nightmare with the appropriate ache and desperation, elevating the emotional tenor of Chiarella’s sad, frequently bleak film.—
Richard Lawson,
HollywoodReporter,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Domingo Morel, a professor at New York University who studies state takeovers of local schools, said most local residents wind up unhappy with the methods used by state interventionists and the results.—
Bri Hatch,
Chalkbeat,
26 Jan. 2026
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Audrey, the single and childless and PhD-less product of a stable but unhappy home, has fallen short of the life planned out for her by her parents.—
Angie Han,
HollywoodReporter,
24 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
This gives you a terrible, crushing headache.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
23 Jan. 2026
-
Years later, a recluse with recurring nightmares, her terrible past resurfaces.—
John Hopewell,
Variety,
22 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Volunteers will spend the morning working on a number of projects downtown, with the potential list including painting the dilapidated former Greyhound Bus station site on Almaden Boulevard and working on the Guadalupe River Park trails.—
Sal Pizarro,
Mercury News,
21 Jan. 2026
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Among his best successes, Xintiandi -- launched in a dilapidated part of central Shanghai in the 1990s -- is today an iconic tourist and nightlife district that attracts thousands of visitors daily to retail spots that range from lululemon to Shake Shack.—
Russell Flannery,
Forbes.com,
17 Jan. 2026
Adjective
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Evening people were 79% more likely to have poor overall heart health compared with those in the intermediate group, the study found.—
Dr. Joseph Wendt,
ABC News,
28 Jan. 2026
-
Audits have identified poor planning, weak oversight, and insufficient monitoring of quality and cost.—
Walter Pavlo,
Forbes.com,
27 Jan. 2026
Adjective
-
For Guardiola to focus on lambasting Hallam was pretty pathetic, all told.—
Tim Spiers,
New York Times,
26 Jan. 2026
-
Marche feared that ChatGPT-3 meant the end of freshman composition papers, but that’s a pathetic and moribund genre anyhow.—
Literary Hub,
Literary Hub,
21 Jan. 2026
Noun
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Tate eventually moved in with her family, who rejected Austen; Austen moved to the Staten Island Farm Colony, a pauper’s hospital.—
Molly Fischer,
New Yorker,
22 Nov. 2025
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When the new sections were added, the old burying ground became a pauper's cemetery for poor White and and Black residents.—
Alexandria Burris,
IndyStar,
14 Nov. 2025
Adjective
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Interestingly, the clip of the penguin proved something of a Rorschach test, with some viewing the creature as a lonely outcast, and others interpreting the penguin’s journey as a quest for adventure.—
Dani Di Placido,
Forbes.com,
26 Jan. 2026
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One of Hardy's victims, who went only by the pseudonym Melanie, told The Guardian that in school, Hardy was a target for bullies and seemed lonely.—
Jessica Sager,
PEOPLE,
26 Jan. 2026
Cite this Entry
“Miserable.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/miserable. Accessed 29 Jan. 2026.
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