Meaning & use
gloominess
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Meanings
noununcountable
A feeling or state of sadness and lack of hope.
Grammar: Uncountable, so it does not take 'a' or a plural. You can say 'a sense of gloominess'.
Patterns
- a sense of gloominess
- gloominess about something
There was a deep gloominess in the room after the bad news.
His gloominess made it hard for others to stay positive.
She tried to hide her gloominess behind a smile.
noununcountable
The quality of being dark, dim, or poorly lit.
Grammar: Used to describe physical darkness, often in literary or descriptive writing.
Patterns
- the gloominess of the sky
- gloominess of the forest
The gloominess of the old house made it feel eerie.
We walked through the gloominess of the forest at dusk.
The gloominess of the weather matched his mood.
Common combinations
- a sense of gloominess
- After the election, there was a sense of gloominess among the staff.
- deep gloominess
- He fell into a deep gloominess after losing his job.
- economic gloominess
- The economic gloominess affected consumer spending.
Synonyms and how they differ
- sadness
- A more general feeling of being unhappy; 'gloominess' suggests a darker, more hopeless mood.
- melancholy
- A more literary and intense form of sadness, often with a thoughtful quality.
- gloom
- Very similar, but often refers to the atmosphere or darkness itself, not just the feeling.
Opposites
Word family
Commonly confused: gloominess or gloom?
gloominess vs gloom
'Gloom' is a noun meaning darkness or sadness; 'gloominess' is the quality of being gloomy. They are often interchangeable, but 'gloom' is more common.
Practice
Choose the correct sentence.
Choose one answer.
'Gloominess' is uncountable, so you cannot say 'a gloominess' (option 0) or 'the gloominess' (option 3). Option 2 is grammatical but less natural; 'a deep gloominess' is a common collocation.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “gloominess”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.