miserable

[ miz-er-uh-buhl, miz-ruh- ]

/ ˈmɪz ər ə bəl, ˈmɪz rə- /

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR miserable ON THESAURUS.COM

adjective

wretchedly unhappy, uneasy, or uncomfortable: miserable victims of war.

wretchedly poor; needy.

of wretched character or quality; contemptible: a miserable villain.

attended with or causing misery: a miserable existence.

manifesting misery.

worthy of pity; deplorable: a miserable failure.

Nearby words

Origin of miserable

1375–1425; late Middle English < Latin miserābilis, equivalent to miserā(rī) to pity (derivative of miser wretched) + -bilis -ble

SYNONYMS FOR miserable

1. forlorn, disconsolate, doleful, distressed. See wretched. 2. destitute. 3. despicable, mean, low, abject. 6. pitiable, lamentable.

SEE MORE SYNONYMS FOR miserable ON THESAURUS.COM

ANTONYMS FOR miserable

1. happy. 2. wealthy. 3. good.

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Related formsmis·er·a·ble·ness, nounmis·er·a·bly, adverbqua·si-mis·er·a·ble, adjectivequa·si-mis·er·a·bly, adverb

Dictionary.com Unabridged Based on the Random House Unabridged Dictionary, © Random House, Inc. 2019

Examples from the Web for miserably

So, miserably, he resorted to the autocue, and even this he turned into a disaster.
Justin Bieber's Abs Cannot Save Him|Tim Teeman|September 10, 2014|DAILY BEAST
And, crucially, what next for these so-called lost women, for the lost girls who have been failed so miserably?
The Psychology of Sex Slave Rings|Charlotte Lytton|August 31, 2014|DAILY BEAST
I had expected Alaska to be miserably cold, with howling winds and fierce storms.
Visiting the Arctic Circle…Before It’s Irreversibly Changed|Terry Greene Sterling|April 1, 2014|DAILY BEAST
She knew she had made the right marriage when she lost the election, miserably.
New Feminists: Young, Multicultural, Strategic, and Looking Out for Each Other|Gail Sheehy|February 26, 2013|DAILY BEAST

But Bennett, a religious IDF commander and self-made multimillionaire, failed us miserably on two leadership issues.
Voting For Yair Lapid, Israel’s Maimonides|Rabbi Daniel Landes|February 4, 2013|DAILY BEAST
Surely an eternity in such a miserably confused crowd would be worse than annihilation itself!
Practical Religion|John Charles Ryle
"It isn't sticking-plaster that I want," she said miserably.
The Other Side of the Sun|Evelyn Sharp
From time to time an investigating fly ventured too near the edge and was miserably drowned.
The Boy Scouts On The Range|Lieut. Howard Payson
You have been successful, and don't know how miserably weak ill-fortune makes a man.
Thoroughbreds|W. A. Fraser
When they first arrived they were miserably poor, but after a few days they picked up, and were difficult to get at.
Sporting Society, Vol. II (of 2)|Various

British Dictionary definitions for miserably

miserable

/ (ˈmɪzərəbəl, ˈmɪzrə-) /

adjective

unhappy or depressed; wretched

causing misery, discomfort, etca miserable life

contemptiblea miserable villain

sordid or squalidmiserable living conditions

Scot, Australian and NZ mean; stingy

(pejorative intensifier)you miserable wretch

Derived Formsmiserableness, nounmiserably, adverb

Word Origin for miserable

C16: from Old French, from Latin miserābilis worthy of pity, from miserārī to pity, from miser wretched

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

Word Origin and History for miserably

miserably

adv.

c.1400; see miserable + -ly (2).

miserable

adj.

early 15c., "full of misery, causing wretchedness" (of conditions), from Old French miserable "prone to pity, merciful," and directly from Latin miserabilis "pitiable, miserable, deplorable, lamentable," from miserari "to pity, lament, deplore," from miser "wretched" (see miser). Of persons, "existing in a state of misery" it is attested from 1520s.

miserable

adjective

RELATED WORDS

Nearby words

Origin of miserable

Examples from the Web for miserably

miserable

adjective

Word Origin for miserable

miserably

miserable