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In the old theory of the four humors, melancholy was linked to an excess of which humor?

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melancholy

American  

[mel-uhn-kol-ee] / ˈmɛl ənˌkɒl i /

noun

melancholies plural

1. a gloomy state of mind, especially when habitual or prolonged; depression.

   Synonyms:

   despondency, dejection, sadness

   Antonyms:

   happiness, cheer

2. sober thoughtfulness; pensiveness.

   Synonyms:

   seriousness

3. Archaic.

   1. the condition of having too much black bile, considered in ancient and medieval medicine to cause gloominess and depression.

   2. black bile.

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adjective

1. affected with, characterized by, or showing melancholy; mournful; depressed.

   a melancholy mood.

   Synonyms:

   downcast, glum, doleful, dismal, sorrowful, dispirited, blue, despondent, gloomy

2. causing melancholy or sadness; saddening.

   a melancholy occasion.

   Antonyms:

   happy

3. soberly thoughtful; pensive.

   Synonyms:

   serious

melancholy British  

/ ˈmɛlənˌkɒlɪlɪ, ˈmɛlənkəlɪ /

noun

1. a constitutional tendency to gloominess or depression

2. a sad thoughtful state of mind; pensiveness

3. archaic

   1. a gloomy character, thought to be caused by too much black bile

   2. one of the four bodily humours; black bile See humour

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adjective

1. characterized by, causing, or expressing sadness, dejection, etc

Other Word Forms

Derived Forms

• melancholiness
  noun
• unmelancholy
  adjective
• melancholily
  adverb

Inflected Forms

Nouns

• melancholies
  plural

Etymology

Origin of melancholy

First recorded in 1275–1325; Middle English melancholie, from Late Latin melancholia, from Greek melancholía ”condition of having black bile,” equivalent to melan- “black” + chol(ḗ) “bile, gall” + -ia noun suffix; see origin at melan(o)-, chol-, -ia

Explanation

Melancholy is beyond sad: as a noun or an adjective, it's a word for the gloomiest of spirits. Being melancholy means that you're overcome in sorrow, wrapped up in sorrowful thoughts. The word started off as a noun for deep sadness, from a rather disgusting source. Back in medieval times, people thought that secretions of the body called "humors" determined their feelings, so a depressed person was thought to have too much of the humor known as melancholy — literally "black bile" secreted from the spleen. Fortunately, we no longer think we're ruled by our spleens, and that black bile has been replaced by another color of sorrow: the "blues."

Example Sentences

See Examples For:

melancholy melancholies

In the lyrics, the singer professes his love for a girl called Celeste over a melancholy piano line, saying: "I hear her voice each time I take a breath".

From BBC ● Jul. 27, 2026

Her melancholy yet danceable single “Choosin’ Texas” has spent 14 weeks at No. 1.

From The Wall Street Journal ● Jul. 26, 2026

If you’ve never watched “Baskets,” this melancholy little picnic isn’t representative of its mood so much as its philosophy.

From Salon ● Jun. 30, 2026

"Is friendship all just for show?" they sing over a melancholy guitar line.

From BBC ● Jun. 4, 2026

“Never have I taken a friend to the Gare du Nord in more melancholy circumstances,” Andries writes his father.

From "Vincent and Theo: The Van Gogh Brothers" by Deborah Heiligman

The pains, regrets and melancholies of the adult characters mingle with the fresher but no less complex experiences of the teenagers getting a taste of love, death and fellowship for the first time.

From Seattle Times ● Jun. 20, 2023

Says Faber Birren, 82, the dean of American color researchers: "Color distracts you from yourself and relieves you of inner anxieties, melancholies and fears."

From Time Magazine Archive

I tell you what it is, Bartram," muttered Master Arthur, "I suppose I'm too young, too, for I've had quite enough of the melancholies for one night.

From Melchior's Dream and Other Tales by Ewing, Juliana Horatia Gatty

For the father relapsed anew into his old strange melancholies, dozing over his books, indulging feint and riposte in the chapel overhead, or gazing moodily along the imprisoned coast.

From Doom Castle by Munro, Neil

"You 've fallen into the black melancholies these some days back," said Rogers to me.

From A Day's Ride A Life's Romance by Lever, Charles James

Related Words

• boredom
• despair
• desperation
• despondency
• ennui
• gloom
• grief
• sorrow
• wistfulness