Synonyms

melancholic

American

[mel-uhn-kol-ik] / ˌmɛl ənˈkɒl ɪk /

adjective

disposed to or affected with melancholy; gloomy.
of, relating to, or affected with melancholia.

Other Word Forms

melancholically adverb
unmelancholic adjective
unmelancholically adverb

Etymology

Origin of melancholic

First recorded in 1350–1400; Middle English melancolik, from Latin melancholicus, from Greek melancholikós; melancholy, -ic

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.

It's a folk-pop song telling a melancholic story of lost love.

From BBC

In “The Rest of Our Lives,” Tom is a modern melancholic, and some of the stops on his journey are to see people he wistfully associates with his youth.

From The Wall Street Journal

Zardoya’s yearning for a love lost crescendoes, and is most devastating, in the piano ballad “Back to You”; but it seems as though even her darkest, most melancholic moments are touched by the fae.

From Los Angeles Times

Andrew Panton, who owns the aircraft and the centre, is melancholic.

From BBC

Meanwhile, the Romans lose all desire to fight upon hearing the melancholic "fado" Portuguese music.

From Barron's

Definitions and idiom definitions from Dictionary.com Unabridged, based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2023