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• half mourning
  half mourning

  noun

  a mourning garb less somber than deep mourning, usually following a period of deep mourning.
• half-mourning
  half-mourning

  noun

  dark grey clothes worn by some during a period after full formal mourning

half mourning

American  

noun

1. a mourning garb less somber than deep mourning, usually following a period of deep mourning.

2. the period during which it is worn.

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half-mourning British  

noun

1. dark grey clothes worn by some during a period after full formal mourning

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Etymology

Origin of half mourning

First recorded in 1810–20

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

half mourning half-mourning

Her husband sits on one end of the frilly sofa, half asleep from the long night, half mourning.

From "Native Speaker" by Chang-rae Lee

There I sat down, finding a sad significance in the delicate suggestion of half mourning.

From In a German Pension by Mansfield, Katherine

And of course I shall not dance, as I'm still in half mourning.

From It Happened in Egypt by Williamson, C. N. (Charles Norris)

A strikingly beautiful city, sad of aspect withal, is this ancient capital of Lorraine, ever wearing half mourning, as it seems, for the loss of its sister Alsace.

From East of Paris Sketches in the Gâtinais, Bourbonnais, and Champagne by Betham-Edwards, Matilda

The funeral rites were half festive, half mourning.

From The World and Its People: Book VII Views in Africa by Badlam, Anna B.

Perhaps he would slide truffle slices under the skin for poulet en demi-deuil, the rarely seen chicken in half-mourning made famous by Eugènie Brazier, the chef who founded La Mère Brazier.

From New York Times ● Jul. 21, 2020

She still wore half-mourning for the late Prince Baratowski.

From Under a Charm, Vol. I (of III) A Novel by Werner, E.

But a woman, a woman in half-mourning, was different, and besides, this was a different woman.

From Little Journeys to the Homes of the Great - Volume 13 Little Journeys to the Homes of Great Lovers by Hubbard, Elbert

She travels from one watering-place to another, wears mourning or half-mourning, is quite interesting, and always has a crowd buzzing around her.

From Waldfried A Novel by Auerbach, Berthold

The ladies wear a kind of half-mourning, a stylish sort of reminder of original sin.

From Ireland as It Is And as It Would be Under Home Rule by Buckley, Robert John