MOROSE Synonyms: 115 Similar and Opposite Words

Q: How is the word 'morose' different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of morose are crabbed , gloomy , glum , saturnine , sulky , sullen , and surly . While all these words mean "showing a forbidding or disagreeable mood," morose adds to glum an element of bitterness or misanthropy. // morose job seekers who are inured to rejection

Q: When can 'crabbed' be used instead of 'morose'?

The synonyms crabbed and morose are sometimes interchangeable, but crabbed applies to a forbidding morose harshness of manner. // the school's notoriously crabbed headmaster

Q: When is 'gloomy' a more appropriate choice than 'morose'?

The meanings of gloomy and morose largely overlap; however, gloomy implies a depression in mood making for seeming sullenness or glumness. // a gloomy mood ushered in by bad news

Q: In what contexts can 'glum' take the place of 'morose'?

The words glum and morose are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, glum suggests a silent dispiritedness. // a glum candidate left to ponder a stunning defeat

Q: Where would 'saturnine' be a reasonable alternative to 'morose'?

Although the words saturnine and morose have much in common, saturnine describes a heavy forbidding aspect or suggests a bitter disposition. // a saturnine cynic always finding fault

Q: When is it sensible to use 'sulky' instead of 'morose'?

While the synonyms sulky and morose are close in meaning, sulky suggests childish resentment expressed in peevish sullenness. // grew sulky after every spat

Q: When could 'sullen' be used to replace 'morose'?

The words sullen and morose can be used in similar contexts, but sullen implies a silent ill humor and a refusal to be sociable. // remained sullen amid the festivities

Q: When might 'surly' be a better fit than 'morose'?

While in some cases nearly identical to morose , surly implies gruffness and sullenness of speech or manner. // a typical surly teenager

morose

adjective

mə-ˈrōs

Definition of morose next

as in somber

causing or marked by an atmosphere lacking in cheer those morose job seekers who have grown accustomed to rejection

Synonyms & Similar Words

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Antonyms & Near Antonyms

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How is the word morose different from other adjectives like it?

Some common synonyms of morose are crabbed, gloomy, glum, saturnine, sulky, sullen, and surly. While all these words mean "showing a forbidding or disagreeable mood," morose adds to glum an element of bitterness or misanthropy.

morose job seekers who are inured to rejection

When can crabbed be used instead of morose?

The synonyms crabbed and morose are sometimes interchangeable, but crabbed applies to a forbidding morose harshness of manner.

the school's notoriously crabbed headmaster

When is gloomy a more appropriate choice than morose?

The meanings of gloomy and morose largely overlap; however, gloomy implies a depression in mood making for seeming sullenness or glumness.

a gloomy mood ushered in by bad news

In what contexts can glum take the place of morose?

The words glum and morose are synonyms, but do differ in nuance. Specifically, glum suggests a silent dispiritedness.

a glum candidate left to ponder a stunning defeat

Where would saturnine be a reasonable alternative to morose?

Although the words saturnine and morose have much in common, saturnine describes a heavy forbidding aspect or suggests a bitter disposition.

a saturnine cynic always finding fault

When is it sensible to use sulky instead of morose?

While the synonyms sulky and morose are close in meaning, sulky suggests childish resentment expressed in peevish sullenness.

grew sulky after every spat

When could sullen be used to replace morose?

The words sullen and morose can be used in similar contexts, but sullen implies a silent ill humor and a refusal to be sociable.

remained sullen amid the festivities

When might surly be a better fit than morose?

While in some cases nearly identical to morose, surly implies gruffness and sullenness of speech or manner.

a typical surly teenager

Example Sentences

Examples are automatically compiled from online sources to show current usage. Read More Opinions expressed in the examples do not represent those of Merriam-Webster or its editors. Send us feedback.

Recent Examples of morose But none of it would have landed had Gad, Lee, and the rest of the Frozen 2 creative team stuck with the morose original cut. —

Ryan Coleman, EW.com, 15 Jan. 2025 And, unrehearsed, Rogers sang the morose song of past love and played the piano, a real treat for fans who've been following her for the past decade. —

Audrey Gibbs, The Tennessean, 13 Oct. 2024 Labuschagne cut a rather morose figure in the first Bazball- inspired Ashes encounter in June last year. —

Tim Ellis, Forbes, 2 Dec. 2024 That said, this encounter between a morose Jamie and his sister’s housemaid, Mary McNab, is a meaningful one and bears including. —

Amy Wilkinson, Vulture, 23 Nov. 2024 See all Example Sentences for morose

Recent Examples of Synonyms for morose

Adjective

After running a somber ad in the 2024 Super Bowl aimed at fighting hate and bigotry, the Foundation to Combat Antisemitism tapped Snoop Dogg and Tom Brady in a spot that had the celebrities squaring off against one another, ticking off reasons why people don’t like one another.

— Brian Steinberg, Variety, 10 Feb. 2025
But as their friendship blossoms and becomes complicated by Dennis’s attraction to Roman, the story transforms, too, revealing one twist after another, each more somber yet strangely delightful than the previous.

— David Sims, The Atlantic, 7 Feb. 2025