gloomy
Americanadjective
-
dark or dim; deeply shaded.
gloomy skies.
- Synonyms:
- threatening, lowering, dusky, shadowy, obscure
-
causing gloom; dismal or depressing.
a gloomy prospect.
-
filled with or showing gloom; sad, dejected, or melancholy.
- Synonyms:
- dispirited, glum, depressed, despondent, downhearted, downcast
- Antonyms:
- happy
-
hopeless or despairing; pessimistic.
a gloomy view of the future.
adjective
-
dark or dismal
-
causing depression, dejection, or gloom
gloomy news
-
despairing; sad
Related Words
See dark ( def. ).
Other Word Forms
- gloomily adverb
- gloominess noun
- overgloomily adverb
- overgloominess noun
- overgloomy adjective
- ungloomily adverb
- ungloomy adjective
Etymology
Origin of gloomy
Explanation
Gloomy means "dark and dreary." A cloudy day, a sad song about lost love, your downbeat mood after your team loses a big game — all of these can be called gloomy. Have you ever been called a Gloomy Gus? If so, you must have been acting depressed or sulky. But you aren't the first to be called that — after all, Gloomy Gus was a comic book character who first appeared in 1904. By the 1940s, this nickname caught on, describing — and possibly adding to the misery — of those who are less happy-seeming than the people around them.
Vocabulary lists containing gloomy
Beowulf vocabulary
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Talk Like Shakespeare Day, List 4
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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.
New York City is in crisis: The economic forecast is gloomy, and citizen confidence has been in steep decline for years.
From The Wall Street Journal • Apr. 22, 2026
After numerous blows on and off the field in the past decade - despite now three promotions in eight years - Coventry fans could be forgiven for their gloomy outlook.
From BBC • Apr. 17, 2026
Consumers have grown gloomy about the economy, and a sluggish job market has held back buyers, Yun said.
From MarketWatch • Apr. 13, 2026
The 62-year-old added that among many emotions, he felt "gloomy for the future of the country after the war".
From Barron's • Apr. 7, 2026
“That I will, Adèle;” and I hastened away with her, glad to quit my gloomy monitress.
From "Jane Eyre" by Charlotte Brontë
Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023
Idioms from The American Heritage® Idioms Dictionary copyright © 2002, 2001, 1995 by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company. Published by Houghton Mifflin Harcourt Publishing Company.
