bleakness

NOUN

barrenness

Synonyms

STRONG

aridity aridness emptiness underdevelopment

Antonyms

WEAK

fecundity fertility fruitfulness

NOUN

depression

Synonyms

STRONG

abasement abjection blahs bummer cheerlessness dejection desolation desperation despondency discouragement dispiritedness distress dole dolefulness dolor downheartedness dreariness dullness dumps ennui gloom gloominess heavyheartedness hopelessness lowness melancholia melancholy misery mortification qualm sadness sorrow trouble unhappiness vapors woefulness worry

WEAK

abjectness blue funk disconsolation heaviness of heart lugubriosity the blues

Antonyms

STRONG

advantage benefit blessing cheer comfort contentedness contentment encouragement gladness happiness hopefulness joy liveliness peace pleasure

WEAK

bulge cheerfulness convexity hope protuberance recovery surge

NOUN

desolation

Synonyms

STRONGEST

devastation isolation loneliness solitude

STRONG

bareness desert dissolution extinction forlornness ruin solitariness waste wildness wreck

Antonyms

STRONG

construction creation development

WEAK

cheer civilization comfort happiness joy

NOUN

gloom

Synonyms

STRONGEST

cloud shadow

STRONG

cloudiness dimness dullness dusk duskiness gloominess murk murkiness obscurity shade twilight

Antonyms

WEAK

animation brightness cheer contentedness encouragement happiness joy light sparkle sunniness vivaciousness

NOUN

sadness

Synonyms

STRONGEST

anguish grief heartache heartbreak hopelessness melancholy misery mourning poignancy sorrow

STRONG

blahs bummer cheerlessness dejection despondency disconsolateness dispiritedness distress dolefulness dolor downer dysphoria forlornness funk gloominess letdown listlessness moodiness mopes mournfulness sorrowfulness tribulation woe

WEAK

blue devils blue funk broken heart dismals downcastness grieving heavy heart the blues the dumps

Antonyms

STRONGEST

cheer delight happiness joy

STRONG

advantage benefit comfort

WEAK

gladness

Example Sentences

Examples are provided to illustrate real-world usage of words in context. Any opinions expressed do not reflect the views of Dictionary.com.

Against the bleakness, a University of Maryland economist and business professor stepped forward to offer hope.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 15, 2025

"I see absolutely nothing to be gained for women's tennis - I see only bleakness," she told BBC Sport.

From BBC • Nov. 5, 2025

Our beginning-of-the-year customs go hand in hand with its bleakness as we choose to make ourselves more cheerless by abstaining from things we enjoy, while pushing ourselves towards the more mundane and less exciting.

From Salon • Jan. 29, 2025

“The bleakness of its vision is enriched by the author’s exquisite eye and ear for detail,” Joyce Carol Oates wrote in the New York Times in 1986.

From Los Angeles Times • May 14, 2024

The bleakness did not entirely leave his eyes.

From "Twilight" by Stephenie Meyer

bleakness

Example Sentences

Related Words