doomed

American  

[doomd] / dumd /

adjective

1. destined, or seemingly destined, especially to an adverse fate.

   Math wizards were able to pinpoint the final resting place of the doomed jet deep beneath the ocean.

2. judged guilty and sentenced, especially to death; condemned.

   Several times today and tonight the doomed man has wept like a child in his prison cell.

3. ordained or fixed, as a sentence or fate.

   In this age of finding everything online, it won’t be long before seed catalogs suffer the same doomed fate as most gardening magazines.

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verb

1. the simple past tense and past participle of doom.

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• self-doomed
  adjective

Etymology

Origin of doomed

doom + -ed ² ( def. )

Explanation

The doomed are people marked by very bad luck, particularly death. When you learn about a tragedy, like a tsunami that kills many people, it makes you feel terrible for the doomed. Doomed is a plural noun for referring to a group of unfortunate people, and it's also an adjective describing someone who's destined to die. A runaway dog that kills the animal control officer's pet chickens is doomed, and many characters in Shakespeare's tragic plays are doomed. You can also follow doomed with "to" to mean "destined" or "fated." Your uncle might be doomed to continue working as a school bus driver for the rest of his career.

Example Sentences

Boy Moms stand alone, the main characters in what often seem like one-woman romantic tragedies of doomed longing.

From Salon • Jun. 4, 2026

From the air, a dozen species of raptors scanned the ground for the doomed and the vulnerable.

From The Wall Street Journal • May 30, 2026

The segment that doomed Alfonsi, “Inside CECOT,” detailed the Trump administration’s treatment of hundreds of Venezuelan migrants who were deported to an El Salvador prison known for its harsh conditions.

From Los Angeles Times • May 28, 2026

Rollins found another purpose to his art after the September 11, 2001 attacks, when he was living just six blocks from the doomed World Trade Center.

From Barron's • May 26, 2026

Although the Norse hero was doomed if he did not yield, he could choose between yielding or dying.

From "Mythology: Timeless Tales of Gods and Heroes" by Edith Hamilton

Related Words

• ill-fated
• wrecked