melancholy
a deep, lingering sadness or pensive gloom
Word origin: From Greek melas, black, and khole, bile.
Melancholy in a sentence
Here are example sentences showing melancholy in a sentence.
A quiet melancholy settled over her as she packed up the empty house.
A pervasive melancholy runs through the late poems, where memory and loss displace the optimism of his youth.
Using “melancholy” well
Melancholy denotes a deep, lingering, often reflective sadness, gentler and more pensive than acute grief. It can carry an almost wistful, contemplative quality.
More GRE words starting with M
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to soften or break down by soaking in liquid
a scheming or crafty plot intended to do harm
a violent whirlpool or scene of turbulent disorder
having or showing great authority and command
the quality of being generous, noble-minded, and forgiving, especially toward rivals or enemies
generous and forgiving, especially toward a rival or weaker party
Questions about “melancholy”
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Definitions in isolation do not stick. Sit a free, full-length GRE mock and meet this vocabulary inside real text completion and sentence equivalence questions, with your score and a worked solution for every answer.