doleful

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.

When no one is around, the doleful ex-judge listens to Italian gangsta rap, and sometimes even raps along with it, suggesting he isn’t quite the stereotype others assume him to be.

From The Wall Street Journal • Dec. 4, 2025

Set in the high-rises of the Cabrini-Green housing project in 1992, when the beleaguered complex’s decline was palpable, it sounds like a recipe for doleful poverty-gazing.

From Los Angeles Times • Apr. 18, 2024

Shouldn’t all movies feature a disillusioned astrophysicist, particularly one as charmingly doleful as Stanfield’s character?

From Seattle Times • Jul. 25, 2023

In a folk-rock fortress built around steady-strummed guitar, Shamir’s falsetto is simultaneously piercing and doleful as he sings about getting through a heartbreak.

From New York Times • Jun. 9, 2023

At his words, Arjun broke into doleful sobs and his brother, Thambi, followed suit.

From "Nectar in a Sieve" by Kamala Markandaya