forlorn
Americanadjective
-
desolate or dreary; unhappy or miserable, as in feeling, condition, or appearance.
- Synonyms:
- comfortless, woebegone, helpless, pitiable, pitiful
- Antonyms:
- happy
-
lonely and sad; forsaken.
-
expressive of hopelessness; despairing.
forlorn glances.
-
bereft; destitute.
forlorn of comfort.
- Synonyms:
- deprived
adjective
-
miserable, wretched, or cheerless; desolate
-
deserted; forsaken
-
destitute; bereft
forlorn of hope
-
desperate
the last forlorn attempt
Synonym Usage
See desolate.
Other Word Forms
Etymology
Origin of forlorn
First recorded before 1150; Middle English foreloren “lost completely,” past participle of forlesen “to lose completely,” Old English forlēosan; cognate with Old High German firliosan ( German verlieren ), Gothic fraliusan; equivalent to for- + lorn
Explanation
Sniff, sniff, boo-hoo...use the adjective forlorn to express loneliness and feeling left out. When someone is forlorn, it means that they not only feel miserable but simultaneously desolate because they believe they are alone. Forlorn is a very old word in English, and in fact it comes from the Old English word forlesen and means "to lose completely." Synonyms for forlorn all have fairly sad meanings: disconsolate, pessimistic, despairing, despondent, abandoned, depressed, desperate.
Vocabulary lists containing forlorn
Holes
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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.
A quick glance down Second Avenue revealed a dispiriting array of closed security grilles—the sort of forlorn prospect that one might expect in Poughkeepsie or Cleveland, not New York, the once-proud “city that never sleeps.”
From The Wall Street Journal ● Oct. 26, 2026
There may have only been 23 overs in the game but already their cause in Birmingham looks a forlorn one.
From BBC ● Sep. 9, 2026
The Hollywood Bowl felt a little forlorn Tuesday night after four long evenings of boisterous 18,000-strong crowds showing L.A.’s many-splendored love for Gustavo Dudamel.
From Los Angeles Times ● Aug. 27, 2026
Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent’s so-far forlorn attempt to suppress long-term bond yields that rattled traders.
From MarketWatch ● Aug. 24, 2026
It seemed strange that people dwelt on so small and forlorn a place, a mere sandbar; maybe they were castaways; but he was too weary to puzzle his head about them then.
From "A Wizard of Earthsea" by Ursula K. Le Guin
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Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
