1
as in emotional
given to expressing strong emotion (as sorrow) by readily shedding tears
a tearful woman who can be counted on to cry at every wedding, anniversary, and funeral
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sad
causing unhappiness
the tearful end to what had once been a close friendship
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tearful
Valle, now 20, was tearful during an emotional reaction to the verdict.
—
Audrey Conklin , Peter D'abrosca, FOXNews.com, 9 July 2025
Finance minister Rachel Reeves became tearful in front of the entire nation on Wednesday, almost exactly a year after Labour took office with a huge majority in parliament.
—Oliver Eagleton, Time, 5 July 2025
The girls who made it onto the school buses arrived at Ingram Elementary, where they were reunited in tearful embraces.
—Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 13 July 2025
Click on the video below to see a tearful stepdad surprised by his stepson's big reveal!
—Ronnie Li, USA Today, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for tearful
Audrey Conklin , Peter D'abrosca, FOXNews.com, 9 July 2025
Finance minister Rachel Reeves became tearful in front of the entire nation on Wednesday, almost exactly a year after Labour took office with a huge majority in parliament.
—Oliver Eagleton, Time, 5 July 2025
The girls who made it onto the school buses arrived at Ingram Elementary, where they were reunited in tearful embraces.
—Dalia Faheid, CNN Money, 13 July 2025
Click on the video below to see a tearful stepdad surprised by his stepson's big reveal!
—Ronnie Li, USA Today, 10 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for tearful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tearful
Adjective
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They are then adopted out to be a pet or are placed in police, fire and EMS stations to provide emotional support.—
Nicole Villalpando,
Austin American Statesman,
30 July 2025
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The vote dashed the hopes of those with the 156-year-old Art Academy, who gave emotional pleas in recent weeks to city leaders for help.—
Scott Wartman,
The Enquirer,
30 July 2025
Adjective
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The sad reality is that Lucky really hasn't had all that much luck in his life to date.—
Jack Beresford,
MSNBC Newsweek,
26 July 2025
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That sparked further investigation into the sad situation of socializing.—
Jeanette Hurt,
Forbes.com,
25 July 2025
Adjective
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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
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The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
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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
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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
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Phoenix assumes a pathetic and quietly arrogant demeanor as Joe, who speaks in a squeaky, exasperated cadence.—
Madison Bloom,
Pitchfork,
17 July 2025
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Enter Flores, who was hired shortly after that pathetic performance.—
Steve Silverman,
Forbes.com,
11 July 2025
Adjective
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What’s more, the brand assures those with sensitive eyes that the sunscreen won’t cause that burning, teary sensation some other formulas cause.—
Jenny Berg,
Allure,
21 July 2025
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This was once a special franchise, as the classy halftime jersey retirement ceremony for Parker reminded everyone, with Lisa Leslie introducing and Parker embracing and the standing crowd a little teary.—
Houston Mitchell,
Los Angeles Times,
1 July 2025
Adjective
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The mournful notes of taps echoed through rainy Bronx neighborhood Thursday afternoon as six New York Police Department officers shouldered the casket of one of their own: Officer Didarul Islam.—
Elizabeth Wolfe,
CNN Money,
31 July 2025
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This second feature from filmmaker Frederik Louis Hviid is well-paced, tense, lovely to look at, and threaded through with a mournful realism.—
Taylor Antrim,
Vogue,
21 July 2025
Adjective
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This combination delivers so much more feeling than a hardened (or weepy) version of death ever could.—
Matthew Clark Davison,
Literary Hub,
18 July 2025
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White’s film was already one of the year’s best documentaries, the kind of film that made this critic and writer cry within its first five minutes, but never feels cheesy or manipulative or weepy for the hell of it.—
Kate Erbland,
IndieWire,
15 July 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tearful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tearful. Accessed 5 Aug. 2025.
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