sadder

Meanings

1. 1adjectivecomparable

   Feeling or showing more unhappiness than someone or something else.

   Grammar: Used to compare two people or things; often followed by 'than' or used with 'the' in a phrase like 'the sadder of the two'.

   Patterns

   • sadder than someone/something
   • the sadder of the two

   After the news, she looked even sadder than before.

   He felt sadder than he had in years.

   Of the two endings, this one is the sadder.

2. 2adjectivecomparable

   Making someone feel more unhappy or sympathetic than another thing.

   Grammar: Describes something that causes sadness; often used with 'than' or in comparisons.

   Patterns

   • sadder than something
   • a sadder story

   The second part of the film is much sadder than the first.

   It's a sadder song when you know the story behind it.

   That ending was sadder than I expected.

Word forms

Common combinations

sadder than ever

After losing the match, the team felt sadder than ever.

the sadder for something

She was the sadder for having missed the party.

look sadder

He looked sadder after reading the letter.

a sadder and wiser person

After the experience, he became a sadder and wiser person.

Synonyms and how they differ

unhappier

Similar meaning but often focuses on a general state of unhappiness rather than a specific sad feeling.

more miserable

Stronger and suggests great suffering; 'sadder' is milder and more common.

Opposites

Word family

sad adjective

Feeling or showing unhappiness.

sadly adverb

In a sad way; also used to mean 'unfortunately'.

sadness noun

The state of feeling unhappy.

Commonly confused: sadder or sadder?

Practice

Make it your own

Write a sentence using “sadder”, then check it and compare it with the examples above.

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