1
as in sad
feeling unhappiness
she was forlorn when she found out the trip had been cancelled
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in lonely
sad from lack of companionship or separation from others
a forlorn wanderer far from home
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
3
as in bleak
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
a forlorn little town whose brief economic boom ended decades ago
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4
as in desperate
feeling or showing no hope
the forlorn expression of a candidate who knows that he hasn't a prayer of winning the election
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Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of forlorn
The area still had a slightly forlorn air, with stores boarded up and a few tent villages.
—
Tony Perrottet, Travel + Leisure, 25 Jan. 2025
In the clip, Junior can be seen lying in his bed, motionless, looking off into the distance with a seemingly forlorn look on his face.
—Raul A. Reyes, Newsweek, 22 Jan. 2025
Star players had to be sold regularly: Richarlison to Tottenham Hotspur at the end of that season, as part of a forlorn attempt at PSR compliance.
—Patrick Boyland, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
Watch on Deadline Dusty is a quiet guy and O’Connor, probably not a casting director’s idea of a cowboy, really manages to show us who this young man is, often with just his forlorn facial expressions rather than the limited dialogue he is given in many scenes.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 26 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forlorn
Tony Perrottet, Travel + Leisure, 25 Jan. 2025
In the clip, Junior can be seen lying in his bed, motionless, looking off into the distance with a seemingly forlorn look on his face.
—Raul A. Reyes, Newsweek, 22 Jan. 2025
Star players had to be sold regularly: Richarlison to Tottenham Hotspur at the end of that season, as part of a forlorn attempt at PSR compliance.
—Patrick Boyland, The Athletic, 14 Feb. 2025
Watch on Deadline Dusty is a quiet guy and O’Connor, probably not a casting director’s idea of a cowboy, really manages to show us who this young man is, often with just his forlorn facial expressions rather than the limited dialogue he is given in many scenes.
—Pete Hammond, Deadline, 26 Jan. 2025
See All Example Sentences for forlorn
Recent Examples of Synonyms for forlorn
Adjective
-
Kwong grew up hearing stories of every kind about Manzanar—scary, sad, funny and infuriating.—
Rachel Ng,
Smithsonian Magazine,
27 Mar. 2025
-
Yet, whatever the deal means for Paul, Weiss, its acquiescence to Trump marks a sad day for the legal profession—or what once was a profession, and is now just another business.—
Ruth Marcus,
New Yorker,
27 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Retirement has been described by many who struggle as being incredibly lonely.—
Lorraine Wiseman,
Forbes,
18 Mar. 2025
-
The withdrawn San Francisco drama, about lonely nonbinary nanny and restaurant server Cass (Asia Kate Dillon), is simple in its presentation, but disguises numerous layers to its story.—
Siddhant Adlakha,
Variety,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Voters were also asked to give one word to describe the Democratic Party, and the responses were bleak.—
Thomas G. Moukawsher,
Newsweek,
21 Mar. 2025
-
Outside of the December slide, this is as bleak as it’s looked for the Rangers this season.—
Arthur Staple,
The Athletic,
21 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
The prospect return likely won't be huge if the Cardinals get desperate, though.—
Paul Du Quenoy,
MSNBC Newsweek,
27 Mar. 2025
-
When her undercover operations reveal alarming evidence that a high-ranking U.K. politician may be a Russian asset, Kate finds herself in a desperate race to uncover their identity.—
Lily Ford,
HollywoodReporter,
26 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Despite that success, Willard was unhappy with the program’s financial commitments.—
Taylor Lyons,
Baltimore Sun,
30 Mar. 2025
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If Amazon is unhappy with season 2 of Citadel and season 1 was not all the great to begin with, this idea that the series is going to launch into some popular, sprawling spy universe for the service seems in doubt.—
Paul Tassi,
Forbes.com,
29 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Fourteen years of war have left the country desolate, and its people exhausted; millions have been displaced or were forced to become refugees.—
Raghed Waked & Justin Salhani,
The Dial,
25 Mar. 2025
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That quality is maintained first and foremost by a desolate whistling-wind sound effect in the background of all the scenes, along with a sustained droning musical score.—
Ben Coxworth,
New Atlas,
14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
There are so many hopeless people out there struggling right now financially and with providing for their families.—
Jordan Greene,
People.com,
18 Mar. 2025
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Sabah had a hopeless prognosis: severe brain edema.—
Ayesha Khan,
The New Yorker,
17 Mar. 2025
Adjective
-
Swelling in the hands and feet, getting sick frequently, feeling depressed, or having wounds that are slow to heal.—
Lorena Meouchi,
Vogue,
21 Mar. 2025
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The photographer asked me to act sad and depressed, to stop smiling.—
Gaylyn Henderson, MPH,
Health,
17 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Forlorn.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/forlorn. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.
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