1
as in somber
causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer
the diner's dim lighting makes eating there a particularly lugubrious experience
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2
as in mournful
expressing or suggesting mourning
in Victorian times, people who could affect particularly lugubrious expressions were hired to march in funeral processions as professional mourners
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Recent Examples of lugubrious
Nobody says surfing the web anymore, but at the time the phrase made sense as a description of the lugubrious, often frustrating task of finding entertainment.
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Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2024
The pop approach to music and politics is no less solemn than the lugubrious 1982 biopic Gandhi.
—Armond White, National Review, 16 Feb. 2024
The leading men are, likewise, a study in contrasts: Fiennes’s Macbeth is a hulking, lugubrious presence, whereas Tennant’s is a gaunt, energetic bundle of angst.
—Houman Barekat, New York Times, 19 Dec. 2023
The neighborhood boasted a lugubrious elevation and convenient proximity to a streetcar line.
—John Kelly, Washington Post, 15 July 2023
See all Example Sentences for lugubrious 
Ian Bogost, The Atlantic, 25 Mar. 2024
The pop approach to music and politics is no less solemn than the lugubrious 1982 biopic Gandhi.
—Armond White, National Review, 16 Feb. 2024
The leading men are, likewise, a study in contrasts: Fiennes’s Macbeth is a hulking, lugubrious presence, whereas Tennant’s is a gaunt, energetic bundle of angst.
—Houman Barekat, New York Times, 19 Dec. 2023
The neighborhood boasted a lugubrious elevation and convenient proximity to a streetcar line.
—John Kelly, Washington Post, 15 July 2023
See all Example Sentences for lugubrious
Recent Examples of Synonyms for lugubrious
Adjective
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As results from the presidential election trickled in showing Vice President Kamala Harris’s growing deficit to former President Donald Trump, Simon took a somber tone.Chase Hunter, The Mercury News, 6 Nov. 2024
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From Bill Plaschke: The silent, somber Bronx suddenly was bathed in joyous dancing blue, a screaming scrum leaping and bouncing and hugging into history.Houston Mitchell, Los Angeles Times, 31 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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That undoubtedly contributes to the mournful feeling that has enveloped Númenor, which is still dealing with the death of King Tar-Palantir and the fallout of Mount Doom’s eruption, including Míriel’s loss of sight.Keith Phipps, Vulture, 29 Aug. 2024
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Soon a mournful blue light would rise over the islands in the sea.Greg Jackson, The New Yorker, 3 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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Some recipients responded to the texts with anger and others with a sense of humor, but many agree that the messages seem to be a bleak foreshadowing.Char Adams, NBC News, 7 Nov. 2024
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The stock's fate hinges on the 2024 presidential election results, with potential appreciation if Trump wins, but a bleak outlook if Kamala Harris prevails.Thomas G. Moukawsher, Newsweek, 5 Nov. 2024
Adjective
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And every day, across from them, outside the clinic, about to enter or just leaving, there were women hugging each other and weeping.David Mamet, National Review, 11 Aug. 2022
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The show manages to stay on the brink — always laughing, never quite weeping — for its entire length.Helen Shaw, Vulture, 8 Dec. 2021
Adjective
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What’s more, twice as many people in the group that got the active treatment reported remission of their depressive symptoms compared with people in the placebo group: 45% vs. 22%.Brenda Goodman, CNN, 1 Nov. 2024
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While both psilocybin and escitalopram showed comparable improvement in depressive symptoms, people who took psilocybin reported greater joy in their lives — a significant plus in keeping depression at bay.Sandee LaMotte, CNN, 22 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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The deceased who are buried at the site would likely have been burnt on funeral pyres.Marco Rubio, Newsweek, 1 Nov. 2024
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The funeral banner features a typical mix of Lebanese faces, making up three generations of a Shiite Muslim family that lived for decades in this predominantly Christian area north of Beirut.Scott Peterson, The Christian Science Monitor, 29 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Loading your audio article The national election news was downright depressing for many in the Bay Area, but there was a lot of cause for celebration among local candidates Tuesday night.Sal Pizarro, The Mercury News, 7 Nov. 2024
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Dreadful game of the week: Cleveland Browns at Philadelphia Eagles — The Browns are just depressing, saddled with the debacle that is the acquisition of quarterback Deshaun Watson, whose numbers are just dreadful.Jim Reineking, USA TODAY, 11 Oct. 2024
Adjective
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Monét began her tweet with five heartbroken emojis.Anna Chan, Billboard, 4 Nov. 2024
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Animal lovers have been left heartbroken by a dog who has already been adopted and returned to the shelter twice in her young life.David Faris, Newsweek, 3 Nov. 2024
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Cite this Entry
“Lugubrious.” Merriam-Webster.com Thesaurus, Merriam-Webster, https://www.merriam-webster.com/thesaurus/lugubrious. Accessed 22 Nov. 2024.
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