wistful

adjective

wist·ful ˈwist-fəl

Synonyms of wistful next

: full of yearning or desire tinged with melancholy

also : inspiring such yearning

a wistful memoir

: musingly sad : pensive

a wistful glance

wistfully

ˈwist-fə-lē

adverb

wistfulness noun

Did you know?

Wistful Has a Wishful History

We see you there, dear reader, gazing silently up at the moon, heart aching to know the history of wistful, as if it could be divined on the lunar surface. And we’d like to ease your melancholy by telling you that the knowledge you seek—nay, pine for—is closer at hand. But the etymology of wistful, while intriguing, is not entirely clear. It’s thought that the word is a combination of wistly, a now-obsolete word meaning “intently” and, perhaps, the similar-sounding wishful. Wistly, in turn, may have come from whistly, an old term meaning “silently” or “quietly.” What’s more certain is that our modern wistful is a great word to describe someone full of pensive yearning, or something inspiring such yearning.

Examples of wistful in a Sentence

She was wistful for a moment, then asked, “Do you remember the old playground?”. He had a wistful look on his face.

Recent Examples on the Web

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.

These are ballads about cheating and addiction, and reflections on wistful memories and true love. —

Justin Curto, Vulture, 13 Dec. 2024 Maybe that’s why reading Machiavelli’s descriptions of his reading routine in exile struck a wistful chord somewhere in me. —

Longreads, 15 Nov. 2024 The result is a remarkably faithful rendition, at turns funny, wistful, gloomy, and joyful. —

EW.com, 30 Nov. 2024 Longtime fans know wistful jazz is a genre particularly close to V’s heart, demonstrated through his stunning debut solo album, Layover, released last fall. —

Jeff Benjamin, Forbes, 29 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for wistful