woeful

Also wo·ful

[woh-fuhl]

adjective

1. full of woe; wretched; unhappy.

   a woeful situation.

2. affected with, characterized by, or indicating woe.

   woeful melodies.

3. of wretched quality; sorry; poor.

   a woeful collection of paintings.

   Synonyms: awful, dreadful, unlikely, unpromising

woeful

/ ˈwəʊfəl /

adjective

1. expressing or characterized by sorrow

2. bringing or causing woe

3. pitiful; miserable

   a woeful standard of work

Other Word Forms

• woefully adverb
• woefulness noun
• unwoeful adjective
• unwoefulness noun

Word History and Origins

Origin of woeful¹

A Middle English word dating back to 1250–1300; woe, -ful

Example Sentences

Marseille climbed provisionally top of the French Ligue 1 on Friday after walloping woeful Nice 5-1 in a one-sided local derby with fireworks on and off the pitch.

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It is hopeful of finding an improved replacement for Michael Conforto, after his woeful performance on a one-year, $17 million deal last season.

Read more on Los Angeles Times

McKenzie produced a woeful conversion attempt but then put the game beyond Scotland in the closing moments with a monster of a long-range penalty.

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Newark Liberty has grown infamous for a slew of issues that extend well beyond its woeful cuisine, fueling a fleet of punchlines on late-night shows.

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United are looking to rebuild following a woeful 2024/25 season, which saw them finish a lowly 15th in the Premier League and lose in the Europa League final to Tottenham Hotspur.

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Related Words

• appalling 
• awful 
• calamitous 
• deplorable 
• disappointing 
• disastrous 
• dreadful 
• feeble 
• grim 
• lamentable 
• lousy 
• miserable 
• paltry 
• pathetic 
• pitiful 
• shocking 
• sorry 
• wretched