woeful

or wo·ful

[ woh-fuhl ]

/ ˈwoʊ fəl /

SEE SYNONYMS FOR woeful ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

full of woe; wretched; unhappy: a woeful situation.

affected with, characterized by, or indicating woe: woeful melodies.

of wretched quality; sorry; poor: a woeful collection of paintings.

Origin of woeful

Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; see origin at woe, -ful

SYNONYMS FOR woeful

3 unpromising, unlikely, dreadful, awful.

SEE SYNONYMS FOR woeful ON THESAURUS.COM

OTHER WORDS FROM woeful

woe·ful·ly, adverb woe·ful·ness, noun un·woe·ful, adjective un·woe·ful·ly, adverb

un·woe·ful·ness, noun

Words nearby woeful

woden, wodge, wodzislaw slaski, woe, woebegone, woeful, woesome, wof, woffington, wog, woggle

Example sentences from the Web for woefully

The newly free country struggled to maintain order in the wake of independence, but it was woefully unprepared.

The Congo's Forgotten Colonial Getaway |Nina Strochlic |December 18, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
His last words, or so they say, were woefully self-indulgent: “Why me, Johnny Lazia, who has been the friend of everybody?”

Those Kansas City Blues: A Family History |Katie Baker |October 24, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
The penniless Pieret announced his intentions of stealing more art from the woefully guarded Louvre to make more money.

Did Picasso Try to Steal the Mona Lisa? |Nick Mafi |October 23, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
That is woefully short of what ISIS needs, and they know it.

It'll Take More Than Bombs to Stop ISIS |Dean Obeidallah |September 2, 2014 |DAILY BEAST

We Americans are so woefully unaware when it comes to the history, and the specifics.

Jonathan Demme on Gaza, Transphobia in ‘The Silence of the Lambs,’ and Meryl Streep as a Rock Star |Marlow Stern |July 25, 2014 |DAILY BEAST
Emma's face fell so woefully at this—was not her John at that moment all expectant round the corner?

The Princess Priscilla's Fortnight |Elizabeth von Arnim
If Hickey had not been woefully weak in mathematics the famous Fed.

The Eternal Boy |Owen Johnson
This victory gained, Rokesmith made haste to profit by it, for he saw how woefully time had been lost.

Our Mutual Friend |Charles Dickens
Mr. and Mrs. Hildyard, you now see the effects of your woefully indulgent training.

Harper's New Monthly Magazine |Various
But the poor child is woefully behind her years in knowledge.

Letty and the Twins |Helen Sherman Griffith

British Dictionary definitions for woefully

woeful

/ (ˈwəʊfəl) /

adjective

expressing or characterized by sorrow

bringing or causing woe

pitiful; miserable a woeful standard of work

Derived forms of woeful

woefully, adverb woefulness, noun

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

woeful

or wo·ful

adjective

Origin of woeful

SYNONYMS FOR woeful

OTHER WORDS FROM woeful

Words nearby woeful

Example sentences from the Web for woefully

British Dictionary definitions for woefully

adjective

Derived forms of woeful

BROWSE DICTIONARY

Learning

woeful

or wo·ful

adjective

Origin of woeful

SYNONYMS FOR woeful

OTHER WORDS FROM woeful

Words nearby woeful

Words related to woefully

Example sentences from the Web for woefully

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adjective

Derived forms of woeful

British Dictionary definitions for woefully