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doleful

[ dohl-fuh l ]

/ ˈdoʊl fəl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR doleful ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

sorrowful; mournful; melancholy: a doleful look on her face.

Origin of doleful

First recorded in 1225–75, doleful is from the Middle English word dol-ful. See dole², -ful

OTHER WORDS FROM doleful

dole·ful·ly, adverb dole·ful·ness, noun

Words nearby doleful

dolcelatte, doldrums, dole, dole bludger, dole cupboard, doleful, dolente, dolerite, dolesome, dolgellau, dolicho-

Example sentences from the Web for doleful

Fox News called him a “doleful hound,” while the Washington Post preferred the less stylized, “slightly befuddled-looking.”

The Taliban Trolled the Internet with a Dog Video and Upstaged an American POW |Brian Van Reet |February 11, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Their garb lent them either the gravitas the Republican bench has previously lacked, or the doleful aspect of ushers at a funeral.

Huckabee Grills GOP Candidates in Republican Presidential Forum |Lloyd Grove |December 4, 2011 |DAILY BEAST
She and Mrs. Baxter and Jane made a doleful little group in the road.

Young Lucretia and Other Stories |Mary E. Wilkins
He heard Quekolis, the whippoorwill, raising his doleful lament down near the river.

Running Fox |Elmer Russell Gregor

Though he tried to make them rollicking and merry, he succeeded only in giving a number of doleful whines.

The Tale of Bobby Bobolink |Arthur Scott Bailey
And then she looked at herself in a mirror, and turned away quickly with tears in her eyes from the doleful sight.

The Red Fairy Book |Various
Thus did the Vision leave me; and many a doleful day succeeded to the parting moment.

The Vision of the Fountain (From "Twice Told Tales") |Nathaniel Hawthorne

British Dictionary definitions for doleful

doleful

/ (ˈdəʊlfʊl) /

adjective

dreary; mournful Archaic word: dolesome (ˈdəʊlsəm)

Derived forms of doleful

dolefully, adverb dolefulness, noun