sad

sad [sad]

adj.

sadder, saddest [ME < OE sæd, sated, full, hence having feelings assoc. with satiety, akin to Ger satt, sated < IE base * sā-, satisfied, sated > L satis, enough, OIr sāith, satiety]

1. having, expressing, or showing low spirits or sorrow; unhappy; mournful; sorrowful

2. causing or characterized by dejection, melancholy, or sorrow

3. dark or dull in color; drab

4. Informal very bad; deplorable

5. Dial. heavy or soggy [a sad cake]

sadly

adv.

sadness

n.

SYN.- SAD is the simple, general term, ranging in implication from a mild, momentary unhappiness to a feeling of intense grief; SORROWFUL implies a sadness caused by some specific loss, disappointment, etc. [her death left him sorrowful]; MELANCHOLY suggests a more or less chronic mournfulness or gloominess, or, often, merely a wistful pensiveness [melancholy thoughts about the future ]; DEJECTED implies discouragement or a sinking of spirits, as because of frustration; DEPRESSED suggests a mood of brooding despondency, as because of fatigue or a sense of futility [the novel left him feeling depressed]; DOLEFUL implies a mournful, often lugubrious, sadness [the doleful look on a lost child's face ] -ANT. HAPPY, CHEERFUL