1
: expressing sorrow : sorrowful
2
: full of sorrow : sad
3
: causing sorrow or melancholy : gloomy
mournfulness
noun
Examples of mournful in a Sentence
she had such a mournful expression that someone teasingly asked if her dog had died
the mournful survivors of the disaster were faced with the grim task of burying the dead
Recent Examples on the Web
The mournful footnote to Hollywood or Bust is that off-set, the friendship between Martin and Lewis had already broken down irrevocably.
—
Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 19 Mar. 2025
Definitely — but there’s a mournful resonance to that in a play where characters reach out so desperately and remain so trapped within themselves.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2025
The poet, who died in 1976, injects mournful omniscience into explorations of heartache.
—The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2025
Masri's lyrics — once triumphant and upbeat — took on a more mournful tone as starvation and death became endemic in Homs.
—Jawad Rizkallah, NPR, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mournful
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.
Stephanie Zacharek, TIME, 19 Mar. 2025
Definitely — but there’s a mournful resonance to that in a play where characters reach out so desperately and remain so trapped within themselves.
—Sara Holdren, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2025
The poet, who died in 1976, injects mournful omniscience into explorations of heartache.
—The New Yorker, 17 Mar. 2025
Masri's lyrics — once triumphant and upbeat — took on a more mournful tone as starvation and death became endemic in Homs.
—Jawad Rizkallah, NPR, 5 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for mournful
Cite this Entry
“Mournful.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/mournful. Accessed 1 Apr. 2025.
Copy CitationKids Definition
mournful
adjective
mourn·ful
ˈmō(ə)rn-fəl 
ˈmȯ(ə)rn-
1
: expressing or full of sorrow : sorrowful
a mournful face
2
: causing sorrow
a mournful story
mournfulness
noun
Love words? Need even more definitions?
Merriam-Webster unabridged
Share