bleak

[ bleek ]

/ blik /

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See synonyms for: bleak / bleaker / bleakest / bleakness on Thesaurus.com

adjective, bleak·er, bleak·est.

bare, desolate, and often windswept: a bleak plain.

cold and piercing; raw: a bleak wind.

without hope or encouragement; depressing; dreary: a bleak future.

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Origin of bleak

1300–50; Middle English bleke pale, blend of variants bleche (Old English blǣc) and blake (Old English blāc); both cognate with Old Norse bleikr,German bleich; akin to bleach

synonym study for bleak

3. See austere.

OTHER WORDS FROM bleak

bleakish, adjectivebleakly, adverbbleakness, noun

Other definitions for bleak (2 of 2)

bleak²

[ bleek ]

/ blik /

noun

a European freshwater fish, Alburnus alburnus, having scales with a silvery pigment that is used in the production of artificial pearls.

Origin of bleak

1400–50; late Middle English bleke, noun use of bleke pale; see bleak¹

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use bleak in a sentence

In the Districts—the cities and towns of New York—the reality is bleaker.
Hunger Games Comes to New York State’s Public Schools|Zephyr Teachout|November 26, 2014|DAILY BEAST
“The Australian version was much bleaker,” Zuckerman said in a 2011 interview with TVWeb.com.
The Weird Existential Genius of ‘Wilfred’|Rich Goldstein|June 25, 2014|DAILY BEAST
Of course it's pretty hard to see the regime compromising, but other avenues are bleaker still.
Syria: Banking on Geneva|Michael Tomasky|May 30, 2013|DAILY BEAST
That Chenoweth would be suited to a role that channels the bleaker parts of her past should come as no surprise.
Kristin Chenoweth on Her Darker Role in ‘Family Weekend’|Kevin Fallon|March 27, 2013|DAILY BEAST

It means that the outlook for immigration reform will only get bleaker.
Obama's Depressed Liberal Base|Matthew Yglesias|July 25, 2010|DAILY BEAST
The soldier may have the sunny side of the wall in peace, but assuredly he has the bleaker side in times of war.
The British Expedition to the Crimea|William Howard Russell
His appearance had not changed; it was impossible for his expression to become bleaker; but there was a tremendous change within.
The Happy End|Joseph Hergesheimer
A child of sunny France, she languished under the bleaker New England skies.
Ernest Linwood|Caroline Lee Hentz
It was toward the end of an afternoon in early April; the discoloured snow still lay huddled in the bleaker fence corners.
The Imperialist|(a.k.a. Mrs. Everard Cotes) Sara Jeannette Duncan
I intended to remain until June, but the spring there is bleaker than your own New England.
The Truth About Tristrem Varick|Edgar Saltus

British Dictionary definitions for bleak (1 of 2)

bleak¹

/ (bliːk) /

adjective

exposed and barren; desolate

cold and raw

offering little hope or excitement; dismala bleak future

Derived forms of bleak

bleakly, adverbbleakness, noun

Word Origin for bleak

Old English blāc bright, pale; related to Old Norse bleikr white, Old High German bleih pale

British Dictionary definitions for bleak (2 of 2)

bleak²

/ (bliːk) /

noun

any slender silvery European cyprinid fish of the genus Alburnus, esp A. lucidus, occurring in slow-flowing rivers

Word Origin for bleak

C15: probably from Old Norse bleikja white colour; related to Old High German bleiche bleach

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

bleak

Origin of bleak

synonym study for bleak

OTHER WORDS FROM bleak

Other definitions for bleak (2 of 2)

Origin of bleak

Words related to bleak

How to use bleak in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for bleak (1 of 2)

Derived forms of bleak

Word Origin for bleak

British Dictionary definitions for bleak (2 of 2)

Word Origin for bleak