mourning

noun

mourn·​ing ˈmȯr-niŋ 

1

: the act of sorrowing

She is still in mourning for her dead husband.

2

a

: an outward sign (such as black clothes or an armband) of grief for a person's death

lots of people there, and only one man in full mourning

—Arnold Bennett

b

: a period of time during which signs of grief are shown

after a long mourning, resume their ordinary dresses

—Henry Reed

Examples of mourning in a Sentence

a day of national mourning

She is still in mourning for her dead husband.

The whole town was in mourning.

a period of deep mourning

His widow was dressed in mourning.

Recent Examples on the Web

Texas stands united in mourning and in our resolve to support those who strive to heal and recover. —Brandi D. Addison, Austin American Statesman, 9 July 2025

Beneath the inevitable finger-pointing and politicizing, there is often a genuine, even desperate, human impulse to find fault not out of malice, but out of mourning and a desire to find solutions. —Alexander Puutio, Forbes.com, 8 July 2025

Typically, a pope's body remains on public display for a few days during the nine-day mourning period. —Katie Wiseman, The Courier-Journal, 2 July 2025

Others were anticipating it with a sense of mourning. —David Folkenflik, NPR, 2 July 2025

Word History

First Known Use

13th century, in the meaning defined at sense 1

Phrases Containing mourning

• go into mourning
• mourning cloak
• mourning dove

Rhymes for mourning

• corning
• horning
• morning
• scorning
• warning
• adorning
• forewarning
• midmorning

Kids Definition

mourning

noun

mourn·​ing ˈmōr-niŋ 

ˈmȯr-

1

: the act of grieving

2

: an outward sign (as black clothes or a black arm band) of grief for a person's death

to wear mourning

3

: a period of time during which signs of grief are shown