tearful

[teer-fuhl]

adjective

1. full of tears; tear; weeping.

2. causing tears: tear.

   the tearful story of his poverty.

tearful

/ ˈtɪəfʊl /

adjective

1. about to cry

2. accompanying or indicative of weeping

   a tearful expression

3. tending to produce tears; sad

Other Word Forms

• tearfully adverb
• tearfulness noun
• half-tearful adjective
• half-tearfully adverb
• half-tearfulness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of tearful¹

First recorded in 1580–90; tear ¹ + -ful

Example Sentences

Addressing guests during the torch ceremony at the Olympia archaeological museum as the first woman to head the Olympic movement, a tearful Coventry stressed the power of sport to unite.

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Pressure continued to grow on the chancellor, when a tearful appearance in the Commons in July sparked speculation about whether she could keep her role and a temporary rise in government borrowing costs.

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England fans also base taunts on his tearful news conference in 2018.

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He’s even more shocked when the formally dressed corpse starts emotionally reacting to the tearful eulogies.

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Ari Gisell gave a tearful apology in court, acknowledging that "nothing I can say will compensate you or give you peace".

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