woeful

adjective

woe·​ful ˈwō-fəl How to pronounce woeful (audio)
variants or less commonly woful
1
: full of woe : grievous
woeful prophecies
2
: involving or bringing woe
3
: lamentably bad or serious : deplorable
woeful ignorance
woefully adverb
woefulness noun

Examples of woeful in a Sentence

The puppy had woeful eyes. The student's grades were woeful.
Recent Examples on the Web
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.
What better test than bottom-of-the-league Southampton, who headed into the game in woeful form — just one win in 20 matches with a goal difference of -32? Charlotte Harpur, The Athletic, 16 Jan. 2025 Barkley was on pace to beat Dickerson’s historic mark, but Eagles coach Nick Sirianni held him out of their Week 18 game against the woeful Giants. Rob Reischel, Forbes, 12 Jan. 2025 There were discipline problems, strategy problems, and the red-flag challenge issues remain woeful. Chris Perkins, Sun Sentinel, 9 Jan. 2025 Things seemed to reach a boiling point after the team’s 20-17 loss to the woeful Panthers in Germany. Charlotte Carroll, The Athletic, 6 Jan. 2025 See all Example Sentences for woeful 

Word History

First Known Use

14th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Time Traveler
The first known use of woeful was in the 14th century

Dictionary Entries Near woeful

Cite this Entry

“Woeful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/woeful. Accessed 21 Jan. 2025.

Kids Definition

woeful

adjective
woe·​ful ˈwō-fəl How to pronounce woeful (audio)
1
: full of woe
a woeful tale
2
: involving or bringing woe
a woeful occurrence
3
: pitifully bad
woeful ignorance
woefully adverb
woefulness noun

More from Merriam-Webster on woeful

Last Updated: - Updated example sentences
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