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View synonyms for

sorrow

[ sor-oh, sawr-oh ]

noun

  1. distress caused by loss, affliction, disappointment, etc.; grief, sadness, or regret.
  2. a cause or occasion of grief or regret, as an affliction, a misfortune, or trouble:

    His first sorrow was the bank failure.

    Synonyms:

  3. the expression of grief, sadness, disappointment, or the like:

    muffled sorrow.



verb (used without object)

  1. to feel sorrow; grieve.

    Synonyms: ,

sorrow

/ ˈɒəʊ /

noun

  1. the characteristic feeling of sadness, grief, or regret associated with loss, bereavement, sympathy for another's suffering, for an injury done, etc
  2. a particular cause or source of regret, grief, etc
  3. Also calledsorrowing the outward expression of grief or sadness
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012

verb

  1. intr to mourn or grieve
“Collins English Dictionary — Complete & Unabridged” 2012 Digital Edition © William Collins Sons & Co. Ltd. 1979, 1986 © HarperCollins Publishers 1998, 2000, 2003, 2005, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2012
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Derived Forms

  • ˈǰǷɴڳܱ, adverb
  • ˈǰǷɴڳܱԱ, noun
  • ˈǰǷɴڳܱ, adjective
  • ˈǰǷɱ, noun
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Other Word Forms

  • ǰ۴Ƿ· noun
  • ǰ۴Ƿ· adjective
  • ܲ·ǰ۴Ƿ·Բ adjective
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Word History and Origins

Origin of sorrow1

First recorded before 900; (noun) Middle English; Old English sorg; cognate with German Sorge, Dutch zorg, Old Norse sorg, Gothic saurga; (verb) Middle English sorwen, Old English sorgian; cognate with Old High German ǰô
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Word History and Origins

Origin of sorrow1

Old English sorg; related to Old Norse sorg, Gothic saurga, Old High German sworga
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Idioms and Phrases

see drown one's sorrows ; more in sorrow than in anger .
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Synonym Study

Sorrow, distress, grief, misery, woe imply bitter suffering, especially as caused by loss or misfortune. Sorrow is the most general term. Grief is keen suffering, especially for a particular reason. Distress implies anxiety, anguish, or acute suffering caused by the pressure of trouble or adversity. Misery suggests such great and unremitting pain or wretchedness of body or mind as crushes the spirit. Woe is deep or inconsolable grief or misery.
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Example Sentences

Examples have not been reviewed.

That was the sense I got from talking to people in the neighbourhood around the festival site all day: an intense mix of shock, sorrow and fury.

From

He was, in every sense, a true shepherd — one who bore the scent of his flock, walking closely with them through their struggles, their sorrows and their joys.

From

Much of that has to do with the way he holds hope in one hand and fatalism in the other, but Cassian borrows plenty of sorrow from the people surrounding him.

From

“Dearest brothers and sisters, with deep sorrow I must announce the death of our Holy Father Francis,” Farrell’s statement released by the Vatican read.

From

The intensity with which the teen hugs his teacher, a father figure, helps a viewer comprehend the depth of the sorrow, imbuing “The Teacher” with a moving potency.

From

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Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.

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