Meaning & use
morosely
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Meanings
adverbnot comparable
In a gloomy and bad-tempered way, without wanting to speak or join in.
Grammar: Modifies verbs of speaking, staring or sitting: he sat morosely.
Patterns
- stare morosely
- sit morosely
He stared morosely at his cold coffee.
She sat morosely in the corner of the party.
"It's fine," he muttered morosely.
adverbnot comparable
In a sulky way that shows disappointment or resentment.
Grammar: Often follows a verb of reply or comment.
Patterns
- reply morosely
- answer morosely
He replied morosely to every question.
The boy kicked morosely at the gravel.
They trudged morosely home after the defeat.
Common combinations
- stare morosely
- She stared morosely out of the rainy window.
- sit morosely
- He sat morosely at the end of the bar.
- say morosely
- "Nobody cares," she said morosely.
- mutter morosely
- He muttered morosely about the delay.
- brood morosely
- She brooded morosely over the argument.
Synonyms and how they differ
- gloomily
- Gloomily is broader and need not imply bad temper, while morosely adds sullenness.
- sullenly
- Sullenly stresses silent resentment, often at being forced to do something.
- glumly
- Glumly is lighter and usually shorter lived than morosely.
- moodily
- Moodily suggests changeable sulking, whereas morosely feels deeper and heavier.
Opposites
Word family
- morose adjective
- gloomy and sullen
- moroseness noun
- the state of being gloomy and sullen
- sullen adjective
- quietly resentful
Commonly confused: morosely or morbidly?
morosely vs morbidly
Morbidly means in an unhealthy, death-focused way. Morosely is about gloomy, sulky mood.
Practice
After missing the train, Sam sat ______ on the platform and refused to talk.
Choose one answer.
Morosely suits a gloomy, silent mood. Eagerly, gladly and playfully all describe positive moods that clash with refusing to talk.
Make it your own
Write a sentence using “morosely”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.