sadness

American  

[sad-nis] / ˈsæd nɪs /

noun

1. the quality or state of being sad; sorrow.

   It’s frustrating to know the sadness you’re feeling and not be able to help you.

2. an instance of sorrow.

   How can you be so unaware of the sadnesses these children have experienced?

---

Etymology

Origin of sadness

First recorded in 1300–50; Middle English sadnesse; sad ( def. ) + -ness ( def. )

Explanation

Someone who's blue feels sadness, like a little girl whose best friend has moved away. Use the noun sadness when you're talking about sorrow. Sadness may be the overwhelming mood at a funeral, for example, or an elderly man might describe his life's greatest sadness as letting his childhood sweetheart get away. An interesting thing about sadness is that its original meaning was "seriousness." It wasn't until the 1600s that it came to mean "full of sorrow."

Example Sentences

"Many people in the community are feeling a mix of sadness, anger, and loss, and I have no intention of adding judgment to anyone."

From BBC • May 9, 2026

I couldn’t go to a comedy club and wax poetic about sadness — some kinds of sadness you can do that with but the death of a child is such a specific and profound taboo.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 22, 2026

Faces in the crowd were filled with gloom and sadness as mourners waited for the Hezbollah-organised ceremony to begin.

From Barron's • Apr. 22, 2026

But, in the midst of feeling joyful connection, I also felt sadness nestled next to that joy.

From Salon • Apr. 19, 2026

I asked Old Joseph, my voice husky with sadness.

From "The Detective's Assistant" by Kate Hannigan

Related Words

• anguish
• grief
• heartache
• heartbreak
• hopelessness
• melancholy
• misery
• mourning
• poignancy
• sorrow