grief-stricken
Americanadjective
adjective
Usage
What does grief-stricken mean? Grief-stricken means overwhelmed or strongly affected by grief—mental or emotional suffering or distress caused by loss or regret. It’s especially used to describe a person who is feeling intense sorrow and loss from the death of a loved one. The word stricken is the past participle of the verb strike, but it can also be used as an adjective meaning the same thing as afflicted. The word grief can also be used in the context of other situations involving loss, such as a divorce or the loss of a job, but grief-stricken is usually only used to describe those who are feeling grief due to a death. In other words, those who are grief-stricken are usually those who are grieving or mourning. Example: She was absolutely grief-stricken after the loss of her mother.
Etymology
Origin of grief-stricken
First recorded in 1900–05
Example Sentences
Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.
One grief-stricken father showed AFP a picture on his mobile phone of his young daughter, dressed in red and gold, who lost her life.
From Barron's ● Oct. 16, 2026
Following the release of excerpts from Spencer's new book, a source told the Sun that a "grief-stricken Charles fought for his ex-wife to have a royal funeral", the paper says.
From BBC ● Sep. 17, 2026
Tyndale introduced the English people to a God who eats with sinners, heals the sick and comforts the grief-stricken: a loving God on a mission to rescue mankind.
From The Wall Street Journal ● Mar. 26, 2026
On the women's side, all bets are on Jessie Buckley, the grief-stricken wife of William Shakespeare mourning their son in "Hamnet" who has swept this awards season.
From Barron's ● Mar. 1, 2026
It shows the phenomenon of a man living at his lowest and writing at his highest; a grief-stricken man who turns out monstrously funny copy.
From "Black Like Me" by John Howard Griffin
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