doleful — expressing sorrow; mournful
Part of speech: ADJECTIVE
Definition: expressing sorrow; mournful
Pronunciation (IPA): /ˈdoʊlfəl/
Example Sentences
- The dog gave me such a doleful look when I said 'no more treats' that I almost caved in.
- His doleful confession about eating all the cookies made everyone laugh instead of getting angry.
- The doleful melody of the violin echoed through the empty concert hall.
doleful
ADJECTIVE[/ˈdoʊlfəl/]
expressing sorrow; mournful

The doleful violinist plays alone in the empty train station at midnight.

DOLE(grief) + FUL(full of) — becoming completely FUL(full of) dark DOLE(grief), the boy stared at his broken toy with a doleful face.

Singing a deeply soulful melody, the musician brought the entire audience to tears with his doleful voice.
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🎤Pronunciation
🌳Etymology
Origin
From Middle English 'doleful', derived from Old French 'dol' (sorrow, grief) combined with the suffix '-ful' (full of). The French 'dol' comes from Latin 'dolus' meaning grief or sorrow.
Breakdown
dole (sorrow, grief) + -ful (full of) = doleful (full of sorrow; mournful)
🎵Rhyme
🔗Collocations
📝Examples
“The dog gave me such a doleful look when I said 'no more treats' that I almost caved in.”
“His doleful confession about eating all the cookies made everyone laugh instead of getting angry.”
“The doleful melody of the violin echoed through the empty concert hall.”
“She spoke in a doleful tone about having to work on Sunday.”
📚Related Words
Synonyms
Antonyms
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