Meaning & use
doleful
Expressing or feeling great sadness or sorrow, often with a mournful appearance.
See it in a sentence
The dog gave a doleful look after being left home alone.
A doleful violin melody drifted through the empty concert hall.
A note on using this word
Doleful often describes a look, expression, or sound rather than a deep, active grief.
Words with a similar meaning
mournfulsorrowful
Choose a synonym to suit the sentence. Meanings can overlap without being identical.
Words with an opposite meaning
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