Synonym Chooser

How is the word morose different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of morose are crabbed, gloomy, glum, saturnine, sulky, sullen, and surly. While all these words mean "showing a forbidding or disagreeable mood," morose adds to glum an element of bitterness or misanthropy.

morose job seekers who are inured to rejection

When can crabbed be used instead of morose?

The synonyms crabbed and morose are sometimes interchangeable, but crabbed applies to a forbidding morose harshness of manner.

the school's notoriously crabbed headmaster

When is gloomy a more appropriate choice than morose?

The meanings of gloomy and morose largely overlap; however, gloomy implies a depression in mood making for seeming sullenness or glumness.

a gloomy mood ushered in by bad news

In what contexts can glum take the place of morose?

The words glum and morose are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, glum suggests a silent dispiritedness.

a glum candidate left to ponder a stunning defeat

Where would saturnine be a reasonable alternative to morose?

Although the words saturnine and morose have much in common, saturnine describes a heavy forbidding aspect or suggests a bitter disposition.

a saturnine cynic always finding fault

When is it sensible to use sulky instead of morose?

While the synonyms sulky and morose are close in meaning, sulky suggests childish resentment expressed in peevish sullenness.

grew sulky after every spat

When could sullen be used to replace morose?

The words sullen and morose can be used in similar contexts, but sullen implies a silent ill humor and a refusal to be sociable.

remained sullen amid the festivities

When might surly be a better fit than morose?

While in some cases nearly identical to morose, surly implies gruffness and sullenness of speech or manner.

a typical surly teenager

Example Sentences

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.
Recent Examples of morose But none of it would have landed had Gad, Lee, and the rest of the Frozen 2 creative team stuck with the morose original cut. Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 15 Jan. 2025 And, unrehearsed, Rogers sang the morose song of past love and played the piano, a real treat for fans who've been following her for the past decade. Audrey Gibbs, The Tennessean, 13 Oct. 2024 Labuschagne cut a rather morose figure in the first Bazball- inspired Ashes encounter in June last year. Tim Ellis, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024 That said, this encounter between a morose Jamie and his sister’s housemaid, Mary McNab, is a meaningful one and bears including. Amy Wilkinson, Vulture, 23 Nov. 2024 See All Example Sentences for morose
Recent Examples of Synonyms for morose
Adjective
  • Field’s somber, clear-eyed Sonya has ardent desires but few illusions.
    Charles McNulty, Los Angeles Times, 19 Mar. 2025
  • At a somber bill-signing less than a month after the mass shooting at the school, Scott was joined by parents of the Parkland victims and area legislators in his office in the state Capitol in Tallahassee.
    Steve Bousquet, Orlando Sentinel, 18 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • 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
  • 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
Adjective
  • Mindfulness mediates the association between chronotype and depressive symptoms in young adults.
    Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 21 Mar. 2025
  • There are four basic types of the disorder, which are characterized by periods of elation and hyper-activity known as manic episodes, which are then followed by depressive stages where the patient experiences feelings of sadness and depression.
    Vanessa Etienne, People.com, 14 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • The truth is more depressing: This show is bad in the usual manner of reality television.
    Peter Tonguette, Washington Examiner - Political News and Conservative Analysis About Congress, the President, and the Federal Government, 21 Mar. 2025
  • That wasn’t even the most depressing of Vlasic’s quotes.
    Scott Powers, The Athletic, 19 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
  • The couple even hires a nanny to care for the doll but shortly after her arrival, strange occurrences begin leading them down a dark path.
    Keith Langston, People.com, 23 Mar. 2025
  • Same goes for Lady Gaga and her fire-red McQueen gown, which hit all the right notes of dark romance.
    Christian Allaire, Vogue, 23 Mar. 2025
Adjective
  • 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
  • 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
  • The Pitt max Pushing Daisies Years: 2007-2009 Length: 2 seasons, 22 episodes Creator: Bryan Fuller The creator of Hannibal also gave us this twisted genre gem, a show that blended morbid humor and genuine character work into a mix that was just too weird for ABC.
    Brian Tallerico, Vulture, 18 Mar. 2025
  • This is projection to an understandable but somewhat morbid degree.
    Kaitlyn Tiffany, The Atlantic, 15 Feb. 2025

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Cite this Entry

“Morose.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/morose. Accessed 31 Mar. 2025.

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