Meanings
adjectivedolesome (comparative more dolesome, superlative most dolesome)
comparative more dolesome · superlative most dolesome
- Characterised or marked by sorrow and grief; doleful; dismal; gloomy.
The grandmother [...] raised her under the dolesome eyes of a multicoloured Virgin Mary.
1973, Toni Morrison, Sula, Chatto & Windus (1993), page 17Synonyms: miserable, unhappy, atrabiliary, atrabilious, blitheless, dispirited, blue, bummed out
Synonyms & antonyms
adjectiveCharacterised or marked by sorrow and grief; doleful; dismal; gloomy.
Origin
From dole (“sorrow, grief”) + -some.
Full word history & related roots →Rhymes & wordplay
Rhymes with dolesome
All rhymes →Cite this entry
APA
dolesome. (n.d.). In WatkinsX Dictionary. Retrieved November 3, 2026, from https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dolesome
MLA
“dolesome.” WatkinsX Dictionary, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dolesome. Accessed November 3, 2026.
Chicago
WatkinsX Dictionary, s.v. “dolesome,” accessed November 3, 2026, https://dictionary.watkinsx.com/word/dolesome.
Source: dolesome on Wiktionary, CC BY-SA 4.0.