gloomy

[gloo-mee]

adjective

gloomier, gloomiest 

1. dark or dim; deeply shaded.

   gloomy skies.

   Synonyms: threatening, lowering, dusky, shadowy, obscure

2. causing gloom; dismal or depressing.

   a gloomy prospect.

3. filled with or showing gloom; sad, dejected, or melancholy.

   Synonyms: dispirited, glum, depressed, despondent, downhearted, downcast
   Antonyms: happy

4. hopeless or despairing; pessimistic.

   a gloomy view of the future.

gloomy

/ ˈɡluːmɪ /

adjective

1. dark or dismal

2. causing depression, dejection, or gloom

   gloomy news

3. despairing; sad

Other Word Forms

• gloomily adverb
• gloominess noun
• overgloomily adverb
• overgloominess noun
• overgloomy adjective
• ungloomily adverb
• ungloomy adjective

Word History and Origins

Origin of gloomy¹

First recorded in 1580–90; gloom + -y ¹

Synonym Study

See dark ( def. ).

Example Sentences

“I move through life very organically. I’m not much of a future planner,” she says through a Zoom call on an unusually gloomy summer afternoon.

From Los Angeles Times

"On the ground floor there were no windows. It felt like you were in a hospital in the basement. It was a slightly gloomy place, a gloomy rabbit warren."

From BBC

"Everything was so dark and so gloomy," she said.

From BBC

Scheffler started the week by revealing his daily wrestle with why he plays the game but his play has shone through the largely gloomy conditions he has played in so far.

From BBC

And then there’s Morgan Wallen, whose thematically gloomy “I’m the Problem” is so sonically dialed in that you almost fear what the album’s enormous success will end up doing to the guy.

From Los Angeles Times

Related Words

• depressed 
• dismal 
• dour 
• forlorn 
• glum 
• melancholy 
• miserable 
• pessimistic 
• sad 
• solemn 
• sullen 
• ugly