1
as in darkened
being without light or without much light
a tenebrous night with no moon
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2
as in dark
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
in the midst of those tenebrous days Thomas Paine penned the immortal words "These are the times that try men's souls"
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Recent Examples of tenebrous
Her writing can be luminous or tenebrous as the mood requires.
—
The Know, Denver Post, 31 Aug. 2025
For all its darkness, Mujica Lainez’s Duke of Bomarzo is a lantern that illuminates the place and period that brought us modernity and, as such, our tenebrous but also brilliant little lives.
—Literary Hub, 8 Aug. 2025
What tenebrous horror is this, emerging from the ineffable darkness?
—Jon Chesto, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Dec. 2022
By the same token, Spanish cinema at large has been reluctant to engage with that tenebrous period.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 30 Dec. 2021
As in the 1610 version, Susanna is seated on a balustrade, but this time there is a tenebrous sky, rather than a clear blue one.
—Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2020
Natalie Erika James' assured first feature demonstrates bracing command of atmospherics, from its tenebrous visuals and labyrinthine production design to its nerve-jangling use of music and a thick soundscape stew of bumps, creaks, thuds and groans.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2020
The Know, Denver Post, 31 Aug. 2025
For all its darkness, Mujica Lainez’s Duke of Bomarzo is a lantern that illuminates the place and period that brought us modernity and, as such, our tenebrous but also brilliant little lives.
—Literary Hub, 8 Aug. 2025
What tenebrous horror is this, emerging from the ineffable darkness?
—Jon Chesto, BostonGlobe.com, 26 Dec. 2022
By the same token, Spanish cinema at large has been reluctant to engage with that tenebrous period.
—Carlos Aguilar, Los Angeles Times, 30 Dec. 2021
As in the 1610 version, Susanna is seated on a balustrade, but this time there is a tenebrous sky, rather than a clear blue one.
—Rebecca Mead, The New Yorker, 28 Sep. 2020
Natalie Erika James' assured first feature demonstrates bracing command of atmospherics, from its tenebrous visuals and labyrinthine production design to its nerve-jangling use of music and a thick soundscape stew of bumps, creaks, thuds and groans.
—David Rooney, The Hollywood Reporter, 27 Jan. 2020
Recent Examples of Synonyms for tenebrous
Adjective
-
Over the weekend, around 16,000 people paid their respects to the designer at his funeral chamber at the Armani Teatro designed by Tadao Ando, filled with white flowers and paper lanterns on the floor in a diagonal grid formation dimly lit up the darkened venue.—
Luisa Zargani,
Footwear News,
10 Sep. 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
Adjective
-
Meanwhile, the outlook for heavier-duty Russian rocket engines is murky, at best.—
Stephen Clark,
ArsTechnica,
12 Sep. 2025
-
Meanwhile, the Cowboys are coming off a Week 1 loss to the Eagles, and their immediate future is looking murky.—
Robert Marvi,
MSNBC Newsweek,
12 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
-
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
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This was a somber visit, and the group was reverent, hushed.—
Jim Clash,
Forbes.com,
11 Sep. 2025
Adjective
-
Breaking free from the isolation tax isn’t just about feeling less lonely.—
Mark Travers,
Forbes.com,
15 Sep. 2025
-
There are a lot of lonely people out there.—
Latoya Gayle,
PEOPLE,
14 Sep. 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
-
The lock screen on the Mac remains a desolate place, relative to the same area in both iOS and iPadOS—this is still a no-notifications, no-widgets zone that exists only to keep your Mac locked.—
ArsTechnica,
ArsTechnica,
15 Sep. 2025
-
While the rest of Burning Man celebrated, Kruglov lay prostrate on the ground at a faraway campsite in a comparatively desolate section of Black Rock City, his throat slashed, as a puddle of blood congealed around his lifeless body.—
Denver Nicks,
Rolling Stone,
14 Sep. 2025
Cite this Entry
“Tenebrous.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/tenebrous. Accessed 18 Sep. 2025.
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