miserable
adjective
mis·er·a·ble
ˈmi-zər-bəl,
ˈmiz-rə-,
ˈmi-zə-rə-
1
: being in a pitiable state of distress or unhappiness (as from want or shame)
miserable refugees
2
a
: wretchedly inadequate or meager (see meager sense 2)
a miserable hovel
b
: causing extreme discomfort or unhappiness
a miserable situation
miserable weather
his miserable childhood
3
: being likely to discredit or shame
his miserable neglect of his wife
had a miserable, snide contempt for our country—
Joyce Winslow
Joyce WinslowSynonyms
- black
- bleak
- cheerless
- chill
- Cimmerian
- cloudy
- cold
- comfortless
- dark
- darkening
- depressing
- depressive
- desolate
- dire
- disconsolate
- dismal
- drear
- dreary
- dreich [chiefly Scottish]
- elegiac
- elegiacal
- forlorn
- funereal
- gloomy
- glum
- godforsaken
- gray
- grey
- lonely
- lonesome
- lugubrious
- morbid
- morose
- murky
- plutonian
- saturnine
- sepulchral
- solemn
- somber
- sombre
- sullen
- sunless
- tenebrific
- tenebrous
- wretched
Examples of miserable in a Sentence
He had a miserable childhood.
My boss is making my life thoroughly miserable with her constant demands and criticism.
He felt lonely and miserable after his divorce.
I've had a miserable cold for the past week.
He lived in a miserable little shack.
Recent Examples on the Web
The concrete there takes, to me, a much more miserable, oppressive tone.
—Owen Davies, Curbed, 4 Nov. 2024
One positive in Green Bay’s miserable offensive performance was the play of running back Josh Jacobs, who finished with 95 yards on 13 carries.
—Rob Reischel, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024
Which is better comes down to personal preference: some love the soft hand of natural fibers, but even the most advanced, small-micron merino wool material can make someone with a wool intolerance miserable.
—Nathan Pipenberg, Outside Online, 30 Oct. 2024
Teasing out a genuinely motivational message from this miserable state of affairs is a Herculean — Cyrusian? — task Miranda seems uniquely bioengineered for.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 22 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for miserable 
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Owen Davies, Curbed, 4 Nov. 2024
One positive in Green Bay’s miserable offensive performance was the play of running back Josh Jacobs, who finished with 95 yards on 13 carries.
—Rob Reischel, Forbes, 3 Nov. 2024
Which is better comes down to personal preference: some love the soft hand of natural fibers, but even the most advanced, small-micron merino wool material can make someone with a wool intolerance miserable.
—Nathan Pipenberg, Outside Online, 30 Oct. 2024
Teasing out a genuinely motivational message from this miserable state of affairs is a Herculean — Cyrusian? — task Miranda seems uniquely bioengineered for.
—Craig Jenkins, Vulture, 22 Oct. 2024
See all Example Sentences for miserable
Articles Related to miserable
Dictionary Entries Near miserable
Cite this Entry
“Miserable.” Merriam-Webster.com Dictionary, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/miserable. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
Copy CitationKids Definition
miserable
adjective
mis·er·a·ble
ˈmiz-ər-bəl
ˈmiz-(ə-)rə-bəl
1
a
: shabby in condition or quality
a miserable place to live
b
: causing great discomfort or unhappiness
a miserable cold
2
: extremely poor or unhappy : wretched
miserableness
noun
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