variants
or less commonly tragical
1
a
: regrettably serious or unpleasant : deplorable, lamentable
a tragic mistake
b
: marked by a sense of tragedy
2
: of, marked by, or expressive of tragedy
the tragic significance of the atomic bomb—
H. S. Truman
H. S. Truman3
a
: dealing with or treated in tragedy
the tragic hero
b
: appropriate to or typical of tragedy
Synonyms
Examples of tragic in a Sentence
Their deaths were tragic and untimely.
They both died in a tragic car accident.
Romeo and Juliet's tragic love affair.
We saw a tragic play about a man with AIDS.
the tragic characters of her novel
Recent Examples on the Web
This was the group that played the tragic fire at The Station nightclub on Feb. 20, 2003 in West Warwick, R.I. Russell's guitarist, Ty Longley, was among those killed.
—Raechal Shewfelt, EW.com, 16 Aug. 2024
Brown was not allowed to possess guns in part due to a 2018 conviction for vehicular manslaughter, which stemmed from a tragic 2017 crash that claimed the lives of Brown’s 5-year-old daughter, Neveah Brown, and Brown’s friend, 23-year-old Dion Christy, according to court records and media reports.
—Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 16 Aug. 2024
The school is also providing counseling support to students, parents, staff, families, and friends affected by the tragic death.
—Max Hauptman, USA TODAY, 15 Aug. 2024
For some, Russell’s name brings up memories of the tragic Station nightclub fire in 2003, which killed 100 people and injured 230 others.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 15 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tragic 
Raechal Shewfelt, EW.com, 16 Aug. 2024
Brown was not allowed to possess guns in part due to a 2018 conviction for vehicular manslaughter, which stemmed from a tragic 2017 crash that claimed the lives of Brown’s 5-year-old daughter, Neveah Brown, and Brown’s friend, 23-year-old Dion Christy, according to court records and media reports.
—Nate Gartrell, The Mercury News, 16 Aug. 2024
The school is also providing counseling support to students, parents, staff, families, and friends affected by the tragic death.
—Max Hauptman, USA TODAY, 15 Aug. 2024
For some, Russell’s name brings up memories of the tragic Station nightclub fire in 2003, which killed 100 people and injured 230 others.
—Tomás Mier, Rolling Stone, 15 Aug. 2024
See all Example Sentences for tragic
These examples are programmatically compiled from various online sources to illustrate current usage of the word 'tragic.' Any opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback about these examples.
Dictionary Entries Near tragic
Cite this Entry
“Tragic.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/tragic. Accessed 25 Aug. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
tragic
adjective
trag·ic
ˈtraj-ik 
1
: of, marked by, or expressive of tragedy
2
: dealing with or appearing in tragedy
a tragic hero
3
: very unfortunate : deplorable
a tragic mistake
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