1
as in emotional
given to expressing strong emotion (as sorrow) by readily shedding tears
a tearful woman who can be counted on to cry at every wedding, anniversary, and funeral
Synonyms & Similar Words
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
2
as in sad
causing unhappiness
the tearful end to what had once been a close friendship
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Antonyms & Near Antonyms
Example Sentences
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Recent Examples of tearful
When conflict arises — a toddler might have a tearful tantrum, or an older kid may shout or lash out — a ‘democratic parent’ should be mindful of the fact that there is likely a root cause of the difficult behavior.
—
Miranda Rake, Parents, 14 Mar. 2025
Zoe Saldaña celebrates immigrants in her tearful Oscar win.
—Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2025
There’s plenty to get tearful about in Banshees—the punishing effects of isolation, the claustrophobia of a life with limited options, the tender bond between the character played by Colin Farrell and his sister.
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 9 Mar. 2025
Riding high off a tearful speech at the Golden Globes, where the film won Best Musical or Comedy, Gascón was an Oscars front-runner until a cascade of hateful past social media posts resurfaced.
—Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 3 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tearful
Miranda Rake, Parents, 14 Mar. 2025
Zoe Saldaña celebrates immigrants in her tearful Oscar win.
—Terry Castleman, Los Angeles Times, 11 Mar. 2025
There’s plenty to get tearful about in Banshees—the punishing effects of isolation, the claustrophobia of a life with limited options, the tender bond between the character played by Colin Farrell and his sister.
—Emma Specter, Vogue, 9 Mar. 2025
Riding high off a tearful speech at the Golden Globes, where the film won Best Musical or Comedy, Gascón was an Oscars front-runner until a cascade of hateful past social media posts resurfaced.
—Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 3 Mar. 2025
See All Example Sentences for tearful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tearful
Adjective
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The film represents a bold examination of the overseas Filipino worker experience, using supernatural horror as a lens to explore the emotional toll of migration.—
Naman Ramachandran,
Variety,
19 Mar. 2025
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Gordon, 30, shared an emotional farewell to a number of wives and girlfriends of Kansas City Chiefs players after her fiancé, Mecole Hardman Jr., reportedly signed a new deal with the Green Bay Packers on Tuesday, March 18.—
Sean Neumann,
People.com,
19 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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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
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Kwong grew up hearing stories of every kind about Manzanar—scary, sad, funny and infuriating.—
Rachel Ng,
Smithsonian Magazine,
27 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.—
David Mamet,
National Review,
11 Aug. 2022
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The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.—
Helen Shaw,
Vulture,
8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
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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
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That wasn’t even the most depressing of Vlasic’s quotes.—
Scott Powers,
The Athletic,
19 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The image of the 77-year-old Green screaming and shaking his cane at the president was partly disturbing but mostly pathetic.—
Matthew Continetti,
National Review,
8 Mar. 2025
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Michael Gandolfini pops up as a slimy Fisk mayoral staffer who wouldn’t look out of place in this magazine’s recent cover featuring the new young right, and his playing both pathetic and vaguely sympathetic is very fun to watch.—
Nicholas Quah,
Vulture,
4 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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Her fellow artists, including Lady Gaga and Billie Eilish, were teary in the audience following the history-making win.—
Evan Nicole Brown,
TIME,
3 Feb. 2025
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Depp plays her character’s final moments with an array of conflicting emotions that let us into Ellen’s mind, from teary resignation to sensual seduction to bitter determination.—
Roxana Hadadi,
Vulture,
22 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The mournful footnote to Hollywood or Bust is that off-set, the friendship between Martin and Lewis had already broken down irrevocably.—
Stephanie Zacharek,
TIME,
19 Mar. 2025
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Definitely — but there’s a mournful resonance to that in a play where characters reach out so desperately and remain so trapped within themselves.—
Sara Holdren,
Vulture,
18 Mar. 2025
Adjective
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The music icon confessed to getting weepy about aging during a bonus episode of the podcast Smartless, which was released to subscribers on Tuesday, March 25 — John's 78th birthday.—
Daniel R. Depetris,
Newsweek,
25 Mar. 2025
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Zoe Saldaña got weepy and impassioned in an acceptance speech that honored her immigrant parents as well as her Dominican heritage.—
Ben Travers,
IndieWire,
3 Mar. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tearful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tearful. Accessed 2 Apr. 2025.
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