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forlorn

[ fawr-lawrn ]
/ fɔrˈlɔrn /
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See synonyms for: forlorn / forlornly / forlornness on Thesaurus.com

adjective
desolate or dreary; unhappy or miserable, as in feeling, condition, or appearance.
lonely and sad; forsaken.
expressive of hopelessness; despairing: forlorn glances.
bereft; destitute: forlorn of comfort.
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Origin of forlorn

before 1150; Middle English foreloren (past participle of forlesen to lose completely), Old English forloren (past participle of forlēosan); cognate with Old High German firliosan (German verlieren), Gothic fraliusan.See for-, lorn

synonym study for forlorn

2. See desolate.

OTHER WORDS FROM forlorn

for·lorn·ly, adverbfor·lorn·ness, nounun·for·lorn, adjective
Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023

How to use forlorn in a sentence

British Dictionary definitions for forlorn

forlorn
/ (fəˈlɔːn) /

adjective
miserable, wretched, or cheerless; desolate
deserted; forsaken
(postpositive foll by of) destitute; bereftforlorn of hope
desperatethe last forlorn attempt

Derived forms of forlorn

forlornly, adverbforlornness, noun

Word Origin for forlorn

Old English forloren lost, from forlēosan to lose; related to Old Saxon farliosan, Gothic fraliusan, Greek luein to release
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
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