tearjerker

noun

tear·​jerk·​er ˈtir-ˌjər-kər 

: a story, song, play, film, or broadcast that moves or is intended to move its audience to tears

tear-jerking

ˈtir-ˌjər-kiŋ 

adjective

Examples of tearjerker in a Sentence

I'm not in the mood to see a tearjerker. Let's watch something funny instead.

Recent Examples on the Web

That's an excellent selection for those looking for a side of comedy among their romance, but those seeking tearjerkers are also in luck because Hulu will add Nicholas Sparks hits The Last Song and The Notebook on the same day. —Kristen Waggoner, Newsweek, 21 Jan. 2025

Fifteen years later, the group encounters problems old and new as director Malcolm D. Lee weaves through jokes and reality in this tearjerker of a film. —Cydney Lee and Kevin Jacobsen Published, EW.com, 18 Dec. 2024

In other words, for a story to be considered a true tragedy (not just a tearjerker or a horror), the protagonist must end up either dead or better off dead. —Hazlitt, 23 Oct. 2024

Rez Ball, like the recent Ben Affleck tearjerker The Way Back, is really an earnest melodrama that conflates recovery off the court with a big comeback on it. —A.a. Dowd, Vulture, 27 Sep. 2024

Word History

First Known Use

1912, in the meaning defined above

Rhymes for tearjerker

• caseworker
• coworker
• farmworker
• woodworker
• worker