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
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2
as in sad
causing unhappiness
the tearful end to what had once been a close friendship
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Examples Sentences
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Recent Examples of tearful
Taking home the award for best supporting actress in a movie for her role in Emilia Pérez, a tearful Saldaña thanked fellow nominees and castmates Selena Gomez and Karla Sofía Gascón, speaking to the trio’s sisterhood and continued support of one another.
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Katherine Singh, refinery29.com, 6 Jan. 2025
Children received gifts, inmates spoke to the crowd from jail and tearful family members shared their hardships.
—Dan Barry, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2025
But this year’s 82nd Annual Golden Globes, airing live on January 5, 2025, isn’t just about dazzling gowns or tearful acceptance speeches.
—Shelby Stewart, Essence, 2 Jan. 2025
At multiple points in the recording, the tearful former student, interviewed in the past month, became overcome and had to pause.
—Clara-Sophia Daly, Miami Herald, 2 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for tearful 
Katherine Singh, refinery29.com, 6 Jan. 2025
Children received gifts, inmates spoke to the crowd from jail and tearful family members shared their hardships.
—Dan Barry, New York Times, 5 Jan. 2025
But this year’s 82nd Annual Golden Globes, airing live on January 5, 2025, isn’t just about dazzling gowns or tearful acceptance speeches.
—Shelby Stewart, Essence, 2 Jan. 2025
At multiple points in the recording, the tearful former student, interviewed in the past month, became overcome and had to pause.
—Clara-Sophia Daly, Miami Herald, 2 Jan. 2025
See all Example Sentences for tearful
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tearful
Adjective
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Then the shelter shared the emotional news that the two little dogs went home with the woman.Simone Jasper, Miami Herald, 6 Jan. 2025
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During a lengthy and emotional acceptance speech, Brody reflected on his own career journey and shared the message of his film,The Brutalist.Lindsay Kimble, People.com, 6 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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But nothing in life is sadder than a reality television person who doesn't know when to retire.Dana Rose Falcone, People.com, 15 Jan. 2025
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Air France regrets this sad event and expresses its sincere condolences.Michael D. Carroll AND Theo Burman, Newsweek, 15 Jan. 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 depressing part is that the smear campaign worked.Nicole Page, IndieWire, 6 Jan. 2025
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In October, Lilium was scrambling for additional investments to keep the doors open and by late December the company announced that the only people still on the payroll would be handling the depressing job of liquidation.David Szondy, New Atlas, 5 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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In the final, pathetic weeks of his failed presidency, Joe Biden has been casting about desperately for a positive legacy.Jack Butler, National Review, 12 Jan. 2025
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The 10th pick will be your usual pathetic Bear player.Jon Greenberg, The Athletic, 5 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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The Golden Globes are well underway and the night is already predictably rife with teary speeches, missed cues and plenty of fodder for celebrity social media discourse.Anna Kaufman, USA TODAY, 6 Jan. 2025
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The speech offered an underdog story, an extension of the themes in her film The Substance, and, judging from the responses from other actors in the room, including a teary Kathy Bates, may have won her some Oscar-nom support from her fellow peers.Jackson McHenry, Vulture, 6 Jan. 2025
Adjective
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So, why not head next door — in a friendly way, not a mournful one — and express your natural curiosity?Philip Galanes, New York Times, 1 Jan. 2025
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Her observations as a woman once romantically involved with the two of them at the same time, confirm their masculine inability to speak their feelings out loud unless they are veiled in mournful songs.Carlos Aguilar, Variety, 28 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Well, for comparison’s sake, here’s a timeline of Erivo and Grande’s extremely weepy press tour (part one).Jason P. Frank, Vulture, 3 Jan. 2025
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Playing a goldtop Les Paul — the entire night was heavy on Gibsons — Slash coaxed out a series of glistening, at times weepy notes from the instrument before propping the guitar onto his knee and unleashing a blues-rock run for the ages.Joseph Hudak, Rolling Stone, 17 Dec. 2024
Thesaurus Entries Near tearful
Cite this Entry
“Tearful.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tearful. Accessed 20 Jan. 2025.
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