1
: moodily or sullenly thoughtful or serious
a brooding genius
a brooding, embittered man
2
: darkly somber
a brooding landscape
a quiet, brooding atmosphere
… brooding, violent images reminiscent of … film noir …—
Tracy Hopkins
Tracy Hopkins
broodingly
adverb
a broodingly handsome actor
Gardner gazes broodingly at the camera …
—Kathleen Murphy
Kathleen Murphy
Examples of brooding in a Sentence
Recent Examples on the Web
Williams plays Dylan, a brooding bad boy.
—Denise Petski, Deadline, 12 Sep. 2025
Each of these paintings presents a burst of brightness against a brooding dark background, and each is mysterious.
—Cullen Murphy, Air Mail, 23 Aug. 2025
Many modern and contemporary writers are drawn to the villanelle as a way to circle around their subject matter, exploring obsession, enchantment, brooding, or the slow work of untangling a difficult emotion.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 19 Aug. 2025
That is the title of a striking piece of artwork hung high above the London skyline, depicting a brooding photograph of Mikel Arteta marking out something that looked like stream-of-consciousness ideas in black paint.
—Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for brooding
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Denise Petski, Deadline, 12 Sep. 2025
Each of these paintings presents a burst of brightness against a brooding dark background, and each is mysterious.
—Cullen Murphy, Air Mail, 23 Aug. 2025
Many modern and contemporary writers are drawn to the villanelle as a way to circle around their subject matter, exploring obsession, enchantment, brooding, or the slow work of untangling a difficult emotion.
—The Editors, JSTOR Daily, 19 Aug. 2025
That is the title of a striking piece of artwork hung high above the London skyline, depicting a brooding photograph of Mikel Arteta marking out something that looked like stream-of-consciousness ideas in black paint.
—Amy Lawrence, New York Times, 14 Aug. 2025
See All Example Sentences for brooding
Cite this Entry
“Brooding.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/brooding. Accessed 13 Sep. 2025.
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