1
as in somber
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
sullen skies that matched our mood on the day of the funeral
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in pouting
given to or displaying a resentful silence and often irritability
sullen and bored at his in-laws' house, he couldn't wait for the holidays to end
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of sullen
Until the UFOs arrive, the sullen grandeur of OK Computer will have to suffice for Yorke, and the rest of us, too.
—
Ew Staff Published, EW.com, 14 Aug. 2025
The Osbournes, set in the family’s L.A. home in the early aughts, deflated the patriarch’s imposing public perception, revealing a noisy life beset by his sullen teens, wife and wrangler, and everyone’s zany dogs.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 25 July 2025
The model, a sullen blonde with messy pageboy hair, looked vaguely sick in it.
—Mona Awad, New Yorker, 20 July 2025
The reflection of my withered face, with deep sullen eyes, blurs behind raindrops sliding down the glass.
—Literary Hub, 11 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for sullen
Ew Staff Published, EW.com, 14 Aug. 2025
The Osbournes, set in the family’s L.A. home in the early aughts, deflated the patriarch’s imposing public perception, revealing a noisy life beset by his sullen teens, wife and wrangler, and everyone’s zany dogs.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 25 July 2025
The model, a sullen blonde with messy pageboy hair, looked vaguely sick in it.
—Mona Awad, New Yorker, 20 July 2025
The reflection of my withered face, with deep sullen eyes, blurs behind raindrops sliding down the glass.
—Literary Hub, 11 July 2025
See All Example Sentences for sullen
Recent Examples of Synonyms for sullen
Adjective
-
The White House moved Thursday's 9/11 ceremony at the Pentagon into the courtyard, away from the 9/11 memorial where the somber ceremony has been held for decades, in light of Kirk's killing.—
Alexandra Hutzler,
ABC News,
11 Sep. 2025
-
This was a somber visit, and the group was reverent, hushed.—
Jim Clash,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Yes, there are good reasons to question NASA's long-term plans for the Artemis lunar program—the woeful cost of the Space Launch System rocket, the complexity of new commercial landers, and a bleak budget outlook.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
12 Sep. 2025
-
That's rather bleak, while Charlie Sheen's life has just been bonkers.—
Brian Truitt,
USA Today,
12 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
He was adopted two weeks later, but after 18 months in his home, Scoob developed a painful skin condition that caused his ears to bleed and left him extremely irritable.—
Lydia Patrick,
MSNBC Newsweek,
11 Sep. 2025
-
Instead, Helen is allowed to be irritable and anti-social, chain-smoking and snappish, without the filmmaker casting judgment.—
Peter Debruge,
Variety,
2 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
His work in those early days bears little resemblance to the crystalline large-format portraits of lonely American landscapes that would come to define his career.—
Chris Wiley,
New Yorker,
9 Sep. 2025
-
Quarterback is an isolating and lonely position, despite entire infrastructures reverse-engineered in service of those who play it, to say nothing of the elaborate playbooks created for them.—
Seth Wickersham,
The Atlantic,
8 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Still, Ortega’s performance proves that sulky, baleful gravity doesn’t have to lose its strange luster over time (a third season has already been announced).—
Tom Gliatto,
PEOPLE,
3 Sep. 2025
-
Founder Max Siegelman drew upon his family’s harness racing roots thanks to the boarding and teaching facility for the sport involving the powerful animal, a sulky and human direction that dates to the 1800s in the US.—
Roxanne Robinson,
Forbes.com,
4 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
Buchwald pointed to research from The Lancet Psychiatry which found adults who engaged in regular physical activity experienced a 25 percent reduction in depressive symptoms.—
Daniella Gray,
MSNBC Newsweek,
16 Sep. 2025
-
As someone who has never been swayed by Gad’s particular brand of obnoxiously chipper humor, Noah’s depressive snark finds him in a much more comfortable register.—
Sam Bodrojan,
IndieWire,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
In the span of a few months rehabbing in Los Angeles in 2023, an oft-surly 40-year-old quarterback became pals with a 25-year-old goofball of a running back.—
Luca Evans,
Denver Post,
30 Aug. 2025
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As a documentary subject, Hersh is thoroughly engaging — by turns charming, surly and vulnerable.—
Sheri Linden,
HollywoodReporter,
29 Aug. 2025
Adjective
-
The night serum visibly smooths wrinkles, reduces fine lines, and soothes the appearance of dark circles and uneven skin tone.—
Gabriela Izquierdo,
Southern Living,
17 Sep. 2025
-
The scent is smoky yet sweet, spicy yet smooth, dark but with an underlying lightness—the result of combining clean white musk with rose, tobacco, suede, and cumin.—
Sophia Panych,
Allure,
16 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Sullen.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/sullen. Accessed 17 Sep. 2025.
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